L  I  B  RA  R,Y 

OF   THE 

U  NIVER5ITY 

or    ILLINOIS 

iiufttts  NisTfuicAL  mm 


f 


L 


Portrait  and  Biographical 


RBCORD 


OF 


DuPciiZ^  and  Cook  Ccninties, 
ILLINOIS, 

CONTAINING 

Biographical  Sketches  of  Prominent  and  Representative 

Citizens  of  the  County 

TOGETHER  WITH  BIOGRAPHIES  AND  PORTRAITS  OF  AUL  THE 
PRE-SIDEN'TS  OF  THE  UNITPI)  STATES 


CHICAGO 

LAKE  CITY  PUBLISHING  CO. 

1S94. 


PKKFACE. 


'HK  greatest  of  English  historians,  Macaii.av.  and  one  of  the  most  brilliant  writers  of  the 
present  century,  has  said:  "The  history  of  ^  aiuntry  is  best  told  in  a  record  of  the  lives  of 
its  people."  In  conformity  with  this  idea,  the  Portrait  anu  Biov.raphical  Album  of  this 
county  has  been  prepared.  Instead  of  going  to  musty  records,  and  taking  therefrom  dr>  statistical 
matter  that  can  \x  appreciatetl  by  but  few,  our  corps  of  writers  have  gone  to  the  people,  the  men 
and  women  who  have,  by  their  enterprise  and  industr>-.  brought  the  county  to  a  rank  second  to 
none  among  those  comprising  this  great  and  noble  State,  and  from  their  lips  have  the  story  of 
their  life  struggles.  No  more  interesting  or  in.stnictive  matter  could  be  presented  to  an  intelligent 
public.  In  this  volume  will  be  found  a  record  of  many  wliose  lives  are  worth>-  the  imitation  of 
coming  generations.  It  tells  how  some,  commencing  life  in  jxiverty.  by  industry  and  economy 
have  accumulate*!  wealth.  It  tells  how  others,  with  limited  advantages  for  securing  an  education, 
have  become  learned  men  antl  women,  with  aii  influence  extending  throughout  the  length  and 
breadth  of  the  land.  It  tells  of  men  who  have  ri.sen  from  the  lower  walks  of  life  to  eminence  as 
statesmen,  and  whose  names  have  become  famous.  It  tells  of  those  in  even,-  walk  in  life  who 
have  striven  to  succeed,  and  records  how  that  success  has  usually  crowned  their  efforts.  It  tells 
also  of  many,  very  many,  who.  not  seeking  the  applause  cf  the  world,  have  pursued  ''the  even 
tenor  of  their  way,"  content  to  have  it  said  of  them,  as  Christ  said  of  the  woman  performing  a 
deed  of  mercy — "They  have  done  what  they  could."  It  tells  how  that  many  in  the  pride  and 
strength  of  young  manhotxl  left  the  plow  and  the  anvil,  the  lawyer's  office  and  the  counting- 
room,  left  ever>-  trade  and  profe.ssion,  and  at  their  country's  call  went  forth  valiantly  "to  do  or 
die,"  and  how  through  their  efforts  the  Union  was  restored  and  peace  once  more  reigned  in  the 
land.  In  the  life  of  every  man  and  of  ever>-  woman  is  a  lesson  that  should  not  \ye  lost  upon 
those  who  follow  after. 

Coming  generations  will  appreciate  this  volume  and  preserve  it  as  a  sacred  treasure,  from 
the  fact  that  it  contains  so  much  that  would  never  find  its  way  into  public  records,  and  which 
would  otherwise  Ix;  inaccessible.  Great  care  has  been  taken  in  the  compilation  of  the  work,  and 
ever\-  opportunit\  possible  given  to  those  represented  to  insure  correctness  in  what  has  been 
written;  and  the  publishers  flatter  themselves  that  they  give  to  their  readers  a  work  with  few 
errors  of  consequence.  In  addition  to  the  biographical  sketches,  f)ortraits  of  a  number  of  repre- 
sentative citizens  are  given. 

The  faces  of  some,  and  biographical  sketches  of  many,  will  Ix;  mis.sed  in  this  volume.  For 
this  the  publishers  are  not  to  blame.  Not  having  a  proper  conceptit)n  of  the  work,  some  refused 
to  give  the  information  necessary  to  compile  a  sketch,  while  others  were  indifferent.  Occasionally 
some  member  of  the  family  would  oppose  the  enterprise,  and  on  account  of  such  opjiosition  the 
support  of  the  interested  one  would  be  withheld.  In  a  few  instances  men  tx)uld  never  Ix-  found, 
though  repeated  calls  were  made  at  their  residence  or  place  of  business. 

Februar> .   1894.  Lake  City  Pibushinc.  Co. 


Portraits  and  Biographies 


OF  TIllC 


PRESIDENTS 


OF   THIv 


United  Statbs 


i 


PRESinKXTS. 


George  Washington. 


F/RST  PRKSIDENT. 


U 


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H  K  Father  of  our  Counir)'  was 
IxDrn  in  Westmorland  Co.,  Va., 
Feb.  22,  1732.  His  parents 
were  Augustine  and  Mary 
(Ball)  Washington.  The  family 
to  which  he  belonged  has  not 
been  satisfactorily  traced  in 
England.  His  great-grand- 
father, John  Washington,  em- 
igrated to  Virginia  about  1657, 
and  became  a  prosi>erous 
*  planter.  He  had  two  sons, 
Lawrence  and  John.  The 
fonner  married  Mildred  Warner 
and  had  three  children,  John, 
.Augustine  and  Mildred.  .Augus- 
tine, the  father  of  Ceorge,  first 
married  Jane  Butler,  who  bore 
him  four  children,  two  of  whom, 
Lawrence  and  Augustine,  reached 
maturity.  Of  six  children  by  his 
second  marriage,  George  was  the 
eldest,  the  others  l)eint;  Betty, 
Samuel,  John  Augustine,  Charles 
and  Mildred. 
Augustine  Washington,  the  father  of  George,  died 
'"  '743i  leaving  a  large  landed  projK-rty.  To  his 
tidest  son,  Lawrence,  he  beijueathed  an  estate  on 
the  Patomac,  afterwards  known  as  Mount  Vernon, 
and  to  George  he  left  the  parental  residence.  George 
received  only  such  education  as  the  neif;hl«rhoo<l 
s<:hools  uflbrded,  save  for  a  short  liine  after  he  left 
in'houl,  when  he  received  private  in-.tniction  in 
mathemai'cs.       His    sixrllini:   was    rather   defective, 


i 


Remarkable  stories  are  told  of  his  great  physica 
strength  and  development  at  an  early  age.  He  wa.s 
an  acknowledged  le.ider  among  his  companions,  and 
was  early  noted  for  that  nobleness  of  character,  fair- 
ness and  veracity  which  characterized  his  whole  life. 

When  George  was  1 4  years  old  he  had  a  desire  to  go  to 
sea,  and  a  midshipman's  warrant  was  secured  for  him, 
but  through  the  opjwsition  of  his  mother  the  idea  was 
abandoned.  Two  years  later  he  was  apixsinted 
surveyor  to  the  immense  estate  of  Lord  Fairfax.  In 
this  business  he  spent  three  years  in  a  rough  frontier 
life,  gaining  experience  wliich  afterwards  i)roved  very 
essential  to  him.  In  175  i,  though  only  19  years  o( 
age,  he  was  a|)i)ointed  adjutant  with  the  rank  o( 
major  in  the  Virginia  militia,  then  being  trained  for 
active  service  against  the  French  and  Indians.  Soon 
after  this  he  sailed  to  the  West  Indies  with  his  brother 
Lawrence,  who  went  there  to  restore  his  health.  They 
soon  returned,  and  in  the  summer  of  1752  Lawrence 
died,  leaving  a  large  fortune  to  an  infant  daughter 
who  did  not  long  survive  him.  On  her  demise  Uie 
estate  of  Mount  Vernon  was  given  to  George. 

Ujwn  the  arrival  of  Robert  Dinwiddie,  as  Lieuten- 
ant-Governor of  Virginia,  in  1752,  the  militia  was 
reorganized,  and  the  province  divided  into  four  mili- 
tary districts,  of  which  the  northern  was  assigned  to 
Washington  as  adjutant  general.  Shortly  after  this 
a  very  i>crilous  mission  was  assigned  him  and  ac- 
cepted, which  others  had  refused.  This  was  to  pro- 
cee<l  to  the  French  iK)st  near  Lake  Flrie  in  North- 
western Pennsylvania.  The  dis.aitce  to  be  traversed 
was  between  500  and  600  miles.  Winter  was  at  hand, 
and  the  journey  was  to  be  made  without  military 
escort,  through  a  territory  occupied  by  Indians.     Th« 


GEORGE   WASHINGTON. 


trip  was  a  perilous  one,  and  several  limes  he  came  near 
losing  his  life,  yet  he  returned  in  safety  and  furnished 
a  full  and  useful  report  of  his  expedition.  A  regiment 
of  300  men  was  raised  in  Virginia  and  put  in  com- 
mand of  Col.  Joshua  Fry,  and  Major  Washington  was 
commissioned  lieutenant-colonel.  Active  war  was 
then  begun  against  the  French  and  Indians,  in  which 
Washington  took  a  most  important  part.  In  the 
aiemorable  event  of  July  9,  1755,  known  as  Brad- 
dock's  defeat,  Washington  was  almost  the  only  officer 
of  distinction  who  escaped  from  the  calamities  of  the 
day  with  life  and  honor.  The  other  aids  of  Braddock 
were  disabled  early  in  the  action,  and  Washington 
alone  was  left  in  that  capacity  on  the  field.  In  a  letter 
to  his  brotlier  he  says :  "  I  had  four  bullets  thtough 
my  coat,  and  two  horses  shot  under  me,  yet  I  escaped 
unhurt,  though  death  was  levelint?,  my  companions 
on  every  side."  An  Indian  sharpshooter  said  he  was 
not  born  to  be  killed  by  a  bullet,  for  he  had  taken 
direct  aim  at  him  seventeen  times,  and  failed  to  hit 
him. 

After  having  been  five  years  in  the  military  service, 
and  vainly  sought  promotion  in  the  royal  army,  he 
look  advantage  of  the  fall  of  Fort  Duquesne  and  the 
e,Kpulsion  of  the  French  from  the  valley  of  the  Ohio, 
to  resign  his  commission.  Soon  after  he  entered  the 
Legislature,  where,  although  not  a  leader,  he  took  an 
active  and  important  part.  January  17,  1759,  he 
married  Mrs.  Martha  (Dandridge)  Custis,  the  wealthy 
widow  of  John  Parke  Custis. 

When  the  British  Parliament  had  closed  the  port 
r)f  Boston,  the  cry  went  up  throughout  the  provinces 
that  "The  cause  of  Boston  is  the  cause  of  us  all  " 
It  was  tlien,  at  the  suggestion  of  Virginia,  that  a  Con  - 
gress  of  all  the  colonies  was  called  to  meet  at  Pliila- 
delphia,Sept.  5,  1774,  to  secure  their  common  liberties, 
peaceably  if  possible.  To  this  Congress  Col.  Wash- 
ington was  sent  as  a  delegate.  On  May  10,  1775,  the 
Congress  re-assembled,  when  the  hostile  intentions  of 
England  were  plainly  apparent.  The  battles  of  Con- 
cord and  Lexington  had  been  fought.  Among  the 
first  acts  of  this  Congress  was  the  election  of  a  com- 
mander-in-chief of  the  colonial  forces.  This  high  and 
responsible  office  was  conferred  upon  Wasliington, 
who  was  still  a  member  of  the  Congress.  He  accepted 
it  on  June  19,  but  upon  the  express  condition  that  he 
receive  no  salary.  He  would  keep  an  exact  account 
of  expenses  and  expect  Congress  lo  pay  them  and 
nothing  more.  It  is  not  the  object  of  this  sketch  to 
trace  the  military  acts  of  Washington,  to  whom  the 
fortunes  and  liberties  of  the  people  of  this  country 
were  so  long  confided.  The  war  was  conducted  by 
him  under  every  possible  disadvantage,  and  while  his 
forces  often  met  with  reverses,  yet  he  overcame  every 
obstacle,  and  after  seven  years  of  heroic  devotion 
and  matchless  skill  he  gained  liberty  for  the  greatest 
nation  of  earth.  On  Dec.  23,  1783,  Washington,  in 
a  parting  address  of  surpassing  beauty,  lestgned  his 


commission    as  commander-in-chief  of  the  army  to 

to  the  Continental  Congress  sitting  at  Annapolis.  He 
retired  immediately  to  Mount  Vernon  and  resumed 
his  occupation  as  a  farmer  and  planter,  shunning  all 
connection  with  public  life. 

In  February,  1 7 89,  Washington  was  unanimously 
elected  President.  In  his  presidential  career  he  was 
subject  to  the  peculiar  trials  incidental  to  a  r.ew 
government ;  trials  from  lack  of  confidence  on  the  part 
of  other  governments;  trials  from  want  of  harmony 
between  the  diflerent  sections  of  our  own  country; 
trials  from  the  impoverished  condition  of  the  country, 
owing  to  the  war  and  want  of  credit;  trials  from  the 
beginnings  of  party  strife.  He  was  no  partisan.  His 
clear  judg.nent  could  discern  the  golden  mean;  and 
while  perhaps  this  alone  kept  our  government  from 
sinking  at  the  very  outset,  it  left  him  exi'osed  to 
attacks  from  both  sides,  which  were  often  bitter  and 
very  annoying. 

At  the  expiration  of  his  first  term  he  was  unani- 
mously re-elected.  At  the  end  of  this  term  many 
were  anxious  that  he  be  re-elected,  but  he  absolutely 
refused  a  third  nomination.  On  the  fourth  of  March, 
1797,  at  the  expiraton  of  his  second  term  as  Presi- 
dent, he  returned  to  his  home,  hoping  to  pass  there 
his  few  remaining  years  free  from  the  annoyances  of 
public  life.  Later  in  the  year,  however,  his  repose 
seemed  likely  to  be  interrupted  by  war  with  France. 
.\t  the  prospect  of  such  a  war  he  was  again  urged  to 
take  command  of  the  armies.  He  chose  his  sub- 
ordinate officers  and  left  to  them  the  charge  of  mat- 
ters in  the  field,  which  he  superintended  from  his 
home.  In  accepting  the  command  he  made  the 
reservation  that  he  was  not  to  be  in  the  field  until 
it  was  necessary.  In  the  midst  of  these  preparations 
his  life  was  suddenly  cut  off.  December  12,  he  took 
.1  severe  cold  from  a  ride  in  the  rain,  which,  settling 
in  his  throat,  produced  inflammation,  and  terminated 
fatally  on  the  night  of  the  fourteenth.  On  the  eigh- 
teenth his  body  was  borne  wi'h  military  honors  to  its 
final  resting  place,  and  interred  in  the  family  vault  at 
Mount  Vernon. 

Of  the  character  of  Washington  it  is  impossible  to 
speak  but  in  terms  of  the  highest  respect  and  ad- 
miration. The  more  we  see  of  the  operations  of 
our  government,  and  the  more  deeply  we  feel  the 
difficulty  of  uniting  all  opinions  in  a  common  interest, 
the  more  highly  we  must  estimate  the  force  cf  his  tal- 
ent and  character,  which  have  be-^n  able  to  challenge 
the  reverence  of  all  parties,  ar.d  principles,  and  na- 
tions, and  to  win  a  fame  as  extended  as  the  limits 
of  the  globe,  and  which  we  cannot  but  believe  will 
be  as  lasting  as  the  existence  of  man. 

The  person  of  Washington  was  unusally  tan,  erect 
and  well  pro[X)rtioned.  His  muscular  strength  was 
great.  His  features  were  of  a  beautiful  symmetn'. 
He  commanded  respect  without  any  a|'.pearance  o£ 
haughtiness,  and  ever  serious  without  being  dull. 


John  Adams. 


SECOND  PRESIDENT. 


IHH 


AKmT^    APA^IS. 


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ii;*«T<ni^* 


MM< 


'-S? 


,|  OUN     ADAMS,     the     second 
k_   President  and  the    tirst    Vice- 


,-    President  of  the  United  States, 
! )(  was   Iwrn    in   Uraintree    ( now 
Ji.   {^uincy),Mass.,  and  about  ten 
miles    from    Boston,    Oct.    19, 
1735.  His  great-grandfather,  Henry 
Adams,   emigrated    from    England 
•ibout  1640,  with  a  family  of  eight 
sons,  and  settled  at  Uraintree.  The 
parents   of  John    were   John    and 
Susannah  (Ik)ylston)  .\dams      His 
father    was    a    farmer    of    limited 
means,  to  which  he  added  the  bus- 
iness of  slioemaking.      He  gave  his 
eldest  son,  John,  a  classical  educa- 
tion   at    Harvard    College.      John 
graduated  in  1755,  and  at  once  took  charge  of  the 
school  in   Worcester,  Mass.      This  he  found  but    a 
'school   of  nfflii  tion,"  from  which  \v:  endeavored  to 
gain  relief  by  devoting  himself,  in   addition,  to  the 
study  of  law.     For  this  purpose  he  placed  himself 
under  the  tuition  of  the  only  lawyer  in  the  town.    He 
had   thought    seriously   of    the    clerical    profession 
but  seems  to  have  been  turned  from  this  by  what  he 
termed  "  the  frightful  engines  of  ecclesiastical  coun- 
jls,  cf  dialjolical  nialice,  and  Calvanistic  good  nature," 
of  the  operations  of  which  he  had  been  a  witness  in 
his  native  town.      He  was  well   fitted  for  the   legal 
jirofession,  ixjssessing  a  clear,  sonorous  voice,  being 
ready  and  (luent  of  si>ecch,  and  having  quick  i)ercep- 
.ive  jowers.     He  gradually  gained  practice,  and  in 
1764  married  Abigail  Smith,  a  daughter  of  a  minister, 
md  a  lady  of  superior  intelligence.     Shortly  after  his 
Tjarriagc,  (i7'''5),  the  attempt  of  I'ariiamentar)'  taxa- 
'ion  turned  him  from  l.iw  to  jKjiitics.      He  tiKjk  initial 
»tci>s  toward  holdir.„  ;t  town  meeting,  and  the  resolu- 


tions he  offered  on  the  subject  became  very  [opulai 
throughout  the  Province,  and  were  adopted  word  foi 
word  l)y  over  forty  different  towns.  He  moved  to  Hos 
ton  in  1768,  and  became  one  of  the  most  courageous 
and  prominent  advocatesof  the  jxapular  cause,  and 
A'as  cliosen  a  member  of  the  General  Court  (the  Leg- 
lislature)  in  1770. 

Mr.  Adams  was  chosen  one  of  the  first  delegates 
from  Massachusetts  to  the  first  Continental  Congrets. 
which  met  in  1774.  Here  he  distinguished  himsell 
by  his  capacity  for  business  and  for  debate,  and  ad- 
vocated the  movement  for  indei>endence  against  t.- ; 
majority  of  the  members.  In  .May,  1776,  he  moved 
and  carried  a  resolution  in  Congress  tliat  the  Colonies 
should  assume  the  duties  of  self-government.  He 
was  a  prominent  member  of  the  committee  of  live 
apjwinted  June  11,  to  prepare  a  declaration  of  inde- 
pendence. This  article  was  drawn  by  Jefferson,  but 
on  Adams  devolved  tlie  task  of  battling  it  through 
Congress  in  a  three  days  debate. 

On  the  day  after  the  Declaration  of  Independence 
was  passed,  while  his  soul  was  yet  warm  with  th! 
glow  of  excited  feeling,  he  wrote  a  letter  to  his  wile 
which,  as  we  read  it  now,  seems  to  have  been  dictated 
by  the  spirit  of  prophecy.  "Yesterday,"  he  says,"i'ae 
greatest  tpiestion  was  decided  that  ever  was  debated 
in  America;  and  greater,  i)erhaps,  never  was  or  wil 
be  decided  among  men.  A  resolution  was  passed 
without  one  dissenting  colony,  '  that  these  United 
Stales  are,  and  of  right  ouglit  to  be,  free  and  inde- 
pendent states."  The  day  is  passed.  The  fourth  of 
July,  1776,  will  be  a  memorable  epoch  in  the  history 
of  America.  I  am  apt  to  believe  it  will  be  celebrated 
by  succeeding  generations,  as  the  great  ar.nivctsary 
festival.  It  ought  to  be  commemorated  as  the  day  o( 
deliverance  by  solemn  acts  of  devotion  to  Almighty 
God.     It  ought  to  be  solemnised  with  i>omp,  sliowi 


«4 


JOHN  ADAMS. 


games,  sixjrts,  guns,  bells,  bonfires,  and  illuminations 
from  one  end  of  the  continent  to  the  other,  from  this 
time  forward  for  ever.  You  will  think  me  transported 
with  enthusiasm,  but  I  am  not.  I  am  well  aware  of 
the  toil,  and  blood  and  treasure,  that  it  will  cost  to 
maintain  this  declaration,  and  support  and  defend 
these  States;  yet,  through  all  the  gloom,  I  can  see  the 
rays  of  light  and  glory.  I  can  see  that  the  end  is 
worth  more  than  all  the  means;  and  that  posterity 
will  triumph,  although  you  and  I  may  rue,  which  I 
hope  we  shall  not." 

In  November,  1777,  Mr.  Adams  was  appointed  a 
ddegate  to  France^  and  to  co-operate  with  Bemjamin 
Franklin  and  Arthur  Lee,  who  were  then  in  Paris,  in 
the  endeavor  to  obtain  assistance  in  arms  and  money 
from  the  French  Government.  This  was  a  severe  trial 
to  his  patriotism,  as  it  separated  him  from  his  home, 
compelled  him  to  cross  the  ocean  in  winter,  and  ex- 
posed him  to  great  peril  of  capture  by  the  British  cruis- 
ers, who  were  seeking  him.  He  left  France  June  17, 
1779.  In  September  of  the  same  year  he  was  again 
chosen  to  go  to  Paris,  and  there  hold  himself  in  readi- 
ness to  negotiate  a  treaty  of  peace  and  of  commerce 
with  Great  Britian,  as  soon  as  the  British  Cabinet 
might  be  found  willing  to  listen  to  such  pvoposels.  He 
sailed  for  France  in  November,  from  there  he  went  to 
Holland,  where  he  negotiated  imi)ortant  loans  and 
formed  important  commercial  treaties 

Finally  a  treaty  of  peace  with  England  was  signed 
Jan.  21,  1783.  The  re-action  from  the  excitement, 
toil  and  an.xiety  through  which  Mr.  Adams  had  passed 
threw  him  into  a  fever.  After  suffering  from  a  con- 
tinued fever  and  becoming  feeble  and  emaciated  he 
was  advised  to  goto  England  to  drink  the  waters  of 
Bath.  \Vhile  in  England,  still  drooping  anddes[)ond- 
ing,  he  received  dispatches  from  his  own  government 
urging  the  necessity  of  his  going  to  .Amsterdam  to 
negotiate  another  loan.  It  was  winter,  his  health  was 
delicate,  yet  he  immediately  set  out,  and  through 
storm,  on  sea,  on  horseback  and  foot,he  made  the  trip. 

February  24,  1785,  Congress  appointed  Mr.  Adams 
envoy  to  the  Court  of  St.  James.  Here  he  met  face 
to  face  the  King  of  England,  who  had  so  long  re- 
garded him  as  a  traitor.  As  England  did  not 
condescend  to  appoint  a  minister  to  the  United 
States,  and  as  Mr.  Adams  felt  that  he  was  accom- 
plishing but  little,  he  sought  permission  to  return  to 
nis  own  country,  where  he  arrived  in  June,  1788. 

When  Washington  was  first  chosen  President,  John 
.\dams,  rendered  illustiious  by  his  signal  services  at 
home  and  abroad,  was  chosen  Vice  President,  .\gain 
at  the  second  election  of  Washington  as  President, 
Adams  was  chosen  Vice  President.  In  1796,  Wash- 
ington retired  from  public  life,  and  Mr.  Adams  was 
elected  President,though  not  without  much  opposition. 
Serving  in  this  office  four  years,he  was  succeeded  by 
Mr.  Jefferson,  his  oppc>nent  in  politics. 

'JVTiile   Mr.  Adams  was  Vice  President  the   grea? 


French  Revolution  shook  the  continent  of  Europe, 
and  it  was  upon  this  point  which  he  was  at  issue  with 
the  majority  of  his  countp,'men  led  by  Mr.  Jefferson. 
Mr.  Adams  felt  no  sympathy  with  the  French  people 
in  their  struggle,  for  he  had  no  confidence  in  their 
power  of  self-government,  and  he  utterly  abhored  the 
class  of  atheist  philosophers  who  he  claimed  caused  it. 
On  the  other  hand  Jefferson's  sympathies  were  strongly 
enlisted  in  behalf  of  the  French  people.  Hence  or- 
iginated the  alienation  between  these  distinguished 
men,  and  two  powerful  parties  were  thus  soon  organ- 
ized, Adams  at  the  head  of  the  one  whose  sympathies 
were  with  England  and  Jefferson  led  the  other  in 
sympathy  with  France. 

The  world  has  seldom  seen  a  spectacle  of  more 
moral  beauty  and  grandeur,  than  was  presented  by  the 
old  age  of  Mr.  Adams.  The  violence  of  party  feeling 
had  died  away,  and  he  had  begun  to  receive  that  just 
appreciation  which,  to  most  men,  is  not  accorded  till 
after  death.  No  one  could  look  upon  his  venerable 
form,  and  think  of  what  he  had  done  and  suffered, 
and  how  he  had  given  up  all  the  prime  and  strength 
of  his  life  to  the  public  good,  without  the  deepest 
emotion  of  gratitude  and  respect.  It  was  his  peculiar 
good  fortune  to  witness  the  complete  success  of  the 
institution  which  he  had  been  so  active  in  creating  and 
supixjrting.  In  1824,  his  cup  of  happiness  was  filled 
to  the  brim,  by  seeing  his  son  elevated  to  the  highest 
station  in  the  gift  of  the  people. 

The  fourth  of  July,  1826,  which  completed  the  half 
century  since  the  signing  of  the  Declaration  of  Inde- 
pendence, arrived,  and  there  were  but  three  of  the 
signers  of  that  immortal  instrument  left  upon  the 
earth  to  hail  its  morning  light.  And,  as  it  is 
well  known,  on  that  day  two  of  these  finished  their 
earthly  pilgrimage,  a  coincidence  so  remarkable  as 
to  seem  miraculous.  For  a  few  days  before  Mr. 
Adams  had  been  rapidly  failing,  and  on  the  morning 
of  the  fourth  he  found  himself  too  weak  to  rise  from 
his  bed.  On  being  requested  to  name  a  toast  for  the 
customary  celebration  of  the  day,  he  exclaimed  "  In- 
dependence FOREVER."  When  the  day  was  ushered 
in,  by  the  ringing  of  bells  and  the  firing  of  cannons, 
he  was  asked  by  one  of  his  attendants  if  he  knew 
what  day  it  was?  He  replied,  "O  yes;  it  is  the  glor- 
ious fourth  of  July — God  bless  it — God  bless  you  all." 
In  the  course  of  the  day  he  said,  "It  is  a  great  and 
glorious  day."  The  last  words  he  uttered  were, 
"Jefferson  survives."  But  he  had,  at  one  o'clock,  re- 
signed his  spiiit  into  the  hands  of  his  God. 

The  personal  appearance  and  manners  of  Mr. 
Adams  were  not  particularly  prepossessing.  His  face, 
as  his  portrait  manifests.was  intellectual  ard  expres- 
sive, but  his  figure  was  low  and  ungraceful,  and  h'S 
manners  were  frequently  abrupt  and  uncourteous. 
He  had  neither  the  lofty  dignity  of  M'ashington,  nor 
the  engaging  elegance  and  gracefulness  which  marked 
the  manners  and  address  of  Jefferson. 


Thomas  Jefferson. 


THIRD  PRESIDENT. 


^•^v^ 


■  «       v.    A'  "*    /v 


''      -ftl    V  ■»» 


.^agaaifibiv..^. .^^ 


,f_'ri[0,\lA^    .fl:  Pi'i;  I? SON. 


'-1»^ 


i 


HOMAS  JEFFERSON  was 

born  April  2,   1743,   it  Shad- 

*well,  Albemiarle  county,  Va. 

His  parents  were  Peter  and 
lane  (  Randolph)  Jefferson, 
the  former  a  native  of  Wales, 
and  the  latter  bom  in  Lon- 
don. To  them  were  lx)rn  six 
daughters  and  two  sons,  of 
wliom  Thomas  was  the  elder. 
When  14  years  of  age  his 
father  died.  He  received  a 
most  liberal  education,  hav- 
ing been  kept  diligently  at  school 
from  the  time  he  was  five  years  of 
age.  In  1760  he  entered  William 
tnd  Mary  College.  Williamsburg  was  then  the  seal 
of  the  Colonial  Court,  and  it  was  the  obode  of  fashion 
a.id  splendor.  V'oung  Jefferson,  who  was  then  17 
years  old,  lived  somewhat  exi>ensively,  keeping  fine 
horses,  and  much  caressed  by  gay  society,  yet  lie 
was  earnestly  devoted  to  his  studies,  and  irreproacha- 
able  in  his  morals.  It  is  strange,  however,  under 
such  influences,that  he  was  not  ruined.  In  the  sec- 
ond year  of  his  college  course,  moved  by  some  un- 
explained inward  imj-'ulse.  he  discarded  his  horses, 
society,  and  even  his  favorite  violin,  to  which  he  had 
previously  given  much  time.  He  often  devoted  fifteen 
nours  a  day  to  haid  study,  allowing  himself  for  ex- 
ercise only  a  run  in  the  evening  twilight  of  a  mile  out 
of  the  city  and  back  again.  He  thus  attained  ver)- 
high  intellectual  culture,  alike  excellence  in  philoso- 
phy and  the  languages.  The  most  difficult  Latin  and 
Greek  authors  he  read  with  facility.  A  more  finished 
ichoW  has  seldom  gone  forth  from  college  halls;  and 


there  was  not  to  be  found,  perhaps,  in  all  Virginia,  a 
more  pureminded,  upright,  gentlemanly  young  man. 

Immediately  upon  leaving  college  he  began  the 
study  of  law.  For  the  short  time  he  continued  in  the 
practice  of  his  jjrofession  he  rose  rapidly  and  distin- 
guished himself  by  his  energy  and  accuteness  as  a 
lawyer.  But  the  times  called  for  greater  action. 
The  policy  of  England  had  awakened  the  spirit  of 
resistance  of  the  .\nierican  Colonies,  and  the  enlarged 
views  which  Jefferson  had  ever  entertained,  soon  led 
him  into  active  [wlitical  life.  In  1769  he  was  choser 
a  member  of  the  Virginia  House  of  Burgesses  la 
1772  he  married  Mrs.  Martha  Skelton,  a  very  oeauti- 
ful,  wealthy  and  highly  accomi)lished  young  widow 

Upon  Mr.  Jefferson's  large  estate  at  .Shadwell,  th;n' 
was  a  majestic  swell  of  land,  called  Monticello,  which 
commanded  a  prospect  of  wonderful  extent  and 
beauty.  This  sixjt  Mr.  Jefferson  selected  (or  his  new 
home;  and  here  he  reared  a  mansion  of  modest  ye* 
elegant  architecture,  which,  next  to  Mount  Vernon 
became  the  most  distinguished  resort  in  our  land. 

In  1775  he  was  sent  to  the  Colonial  Congress, 
where,  though  a  silent  member,  his  abilities  as  a 
writer  and  a  reasoner  soon  become  known,  and  he 
was  ;,laced  \\\iq\\  a  number  of  imiwrtant  committees, 
and  was  chairman  of  the  one  appointed  for  the  draw- 
ing up  of  a  declaration  of  independence.  This  com- 
mittee consisted  of  Thomas  Jefferson,  John  .\danis. 
Benjamin  Franklin,  Roger  Sherman  and  Roliert  R. 
Livingston.  Jefferson,  as  chainnan,  was  apjioiiited 
to  draw  up  the  pai)er.  Franklin  and  .Adams  suggested 
a  few  verbal  changes  before  it  was  submitted  to  Con- 
gress. On  June  28,  a  few  siight  changes  were  made 
in  it  by  Congress,  and  it  was  passed  and  signed  July 
4,  1776.     What  must  have  been  the  feelings  of  that 


28 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON. 


man — what  the  emotions  that  swelled  his  breast — 
who  was  charged  with  'he  preparaiion  of  that  Dec- 
laration, which,  while  it  made  known  the  wrongs  of 
America,  was  also  to  publish  her  to  the  world,  free, 
Boverign  and  independent.  It  is  one  of  the  most  re- 
markable pa|jers  ever  written  ;  and  did  no  other  effort 
of  the  mind  of  its  author  exist,  that  alone  would  be 
sufficient  to  stamp  his  name  with  immortality. 

In  1779  Mr.  Jefferson  was  elected  successor  to 
Patrick  Henry,  as  Governor  of  Virginia.  At  one  time 
the  British  ofticer,  Tarleton,  sent  a  secret  expedition  to 
Moniicello,  to  capture  the  Governor.  Scarcely  five 
minutes  elapsed  after  the  hurried  escape  of  Mr.  Jef- 
ferson and  his  family,  ere  his  mansion  was  in  posses- 
sion of  the  British  troops.  His  wife's  health,  never 
very  good,  was  much  injured  by  this  excitement,  and 
in  the  summer  of  1782  she  died. 

Mr.  Jefferson  was  elected  to  Congress  in  1783. 
Two  yeirs  later  he  was  appointed  Minister  Plenipo- 
tentiary to  France.  Returning  to  the  United  States 
in  September,  1789,  he  became  Secretary  of  State 
m  Washington's  cabinet.  This  position  he  resigned 
Jan.  T,  1794.  In  1797,  he  was  chosen  Vice  Presi- 
dent, and  four  years  later  was  elected  President  over 
Mr.  Adams,  with  Aaron  Burr  as  Vice  President.  In 
t8o4  he  was  re-elected  with  wonderful  unanimity, 
and  George  Clinton,  Vice  President. 

The  early  part  of  Mr.  Jefferson's  second  adminstra- 
tion  was  disturbed  by  an  event  which  threatened  the 
tranquility  and  peace  of  the  Union;  this  was  the  con- 
spiracy of  Aaron  Burr.  Defeated  in  the  late  election 
to  the  Vice  Presidency,  and  led  on  by  an  unprincipled 
ambition,  this  exiraordinar)-  man  formed  the  plan  of  a 
military  expedition  into  the  Spanish  territories  on  our 
southwestern  frontier,  for  the  purixise  of  forming  there 
a  new  republic.  This  has  been  generally  supposed 
was  a  mere  pretext ;  and  although  it  has  not  been 
generally  known  what  his  real  plans  were,  there  is  no 
doubt  that  they  were  of  a  far  more  dangerous 
character. 

In  1809,  at  the  expiration  of  the  second  term  for 
which  Mr.  Jefferson  had  been  elected,  he  determined 
to  retire  from  political  life.  For  a  period  of  nearly 
forty  years,  he  had  been  continually  before  the  pub- 
lic, and  all  that  time  had  been  employed  in  offices  of 
the  greatest  trust  and  responsibility.  Having  thus  de- 
voted the  best  part  of  his  life  to  the  service  of  his 
countrv",  he  now  felt  desirous  of  that  rest  which  his 
declining  years  required,  and  ujxDn  the  organization  of 
the  new  administration,  in  March,  1809,  he  bid  fare- 
well forever  to  public  life,  and  retired  to  Monticelio. 

Mr.  Jefferson  was  profuse  in  his  hospitality.  Whole 
families  came  in  their  coaches  with  their  horses, — 
fathers  and  mothers,  boys  and  girls,  babies  and 
nurses, — and  remained  three  and  even  six  months. 
T,ife  at  Monticelio,  for  years,  resembled  that  at  a 
fashionable  watering-place. 

The  fourth  of  July  1826,  being  the  fiftieth  anniver- 


sary of  the  Declaration  of  American  Independence, 
great  preparations  were  made  in  every  part  of  the 
Union  for  its  celebration,  as  the  nation's  jubilee,  and 
the  citizens  of  Washington,  to  add  to  the  solemnity 
of  the  occasion,  invited  Mr.  Jefferson,  as  the  framer, 
and  one  of  the  few  surviving  signers    of  the  Declara- 

j  tion,  to  participate  in  their  festivities.  But  an  ill- 
ness, which  had  been  of  several  weeks  duration,  and 
had  been  continually  increasing,  compelled  him  to 
decline  the  invitation. 

I  On  the  second  of  July,  the  disease  under  which 
he   was   laboring   left    him,  but   in  such  a    reduced 

■  state  that  his  medical  attendants,  entertained  nc 
hope  of  his  recovery.  From  this  time  he  was  perfectly 
sensible  that  his  last  hour  was  at  hand.  On  the  ne.\'. 
duy,  which  was  Monday,  he  asked  of  those  around 
him,  the  day  of  the  month,  and  on  being  told  it  was 
the  third  of  July,  he  expressed  the  earnest  wish  tha. 
he  might  be  permitted  to  breathe  the  airof  the  fiftieth 
anniversary.  His  prayer  was  heard — that  day,  whose 
dawn  was  hailed  with  such  rapture  through  our  land, 
burst  uix)n  his  eyes,  and  then  they  were  closed  for- 
ever. And  what  a  noble  consummation  hi  a  noble 
life!  To  die  on  that  day, — the  birthday  of  a  nation,-  - 
the  day  v/hich  his  own  name  and  his  own  act  had 
rendered  glorious;  to  die  amidst  the  rejoicings  and 
festivities  of  a  whole  nation,  who   looked   up  to  him, 

'■  as  the  author,  under  God,  of  their  greatest  blessings, 
was  all  that  was  wanting  to  fill  up  the  record  his  life. 
Almost  at  the  same  hour  of  his  death,  the  kin- 
dred spirit  of  the  venerable  Adams,  as  if  to  bear 
him  company,  left  the  scene  of  his  earthly  honors. 
Hand  in  hand  they  had  stood  forth,  the  champions  of 
freedom  ;  hand  in  hand,  during  the  dark  and  des|  er- 

!  ate  struggle  of  the  Revolution,  they  had  cheered  and 
animated    their   desponding  countr}-men;  for  half  a 

i   century  they  had  labored  together  for  tne  good  of 

'  the  countr)';  and  now  hand  in  hand  they  depart. 
In  their  lives  they  had  been  united  in  the  same  great 
cause  of  liberty,  and  in  tlieir  deaths  they  were  not 
divided. 

In  person  Mr.  Jefferson  was  tall  and  thin,  rather 

,  above  six  feet  in  height,  but  well  formed;  his  eyes 
were  light,  his  hair  originally  red,  in  after  life  became 
white  and  silver)';  his  complexion  was  fair,  his  fore- 
head broad,  and  his  whole  courtenance  intelligent  and 
thoughtful.  He  possessed  great  fortitude  of  mind  as 
well  as  personal  courage ;  and  ;.:s  command  of  tem- 
per was  such  that  his  oldest  and  most  intimate  friends 
never  recollected  to  have  seen  him  in  a  passion. 
His  manners,  though  dignified,  were  simple  and  un- 
affected, and  his  hospitality  was  so  unbounded  that 
all  found  at  his  house  a  ready  welcome.  In  conver- 
sation he  was  fluent,  eloquent  and  enthusiastic  ;  and 
his  language  was  remarkably  pure  and  con-ect.  He 
was  a  finished  classical  scholar,  and  in  his  writings  is 
discemable  the  care  with  which  he  formed  his  styk 
upon  the  best  models  of  antiquity. 


James  Madison. 


FOVRTJI  FRtSJDENT. 


3^ 


'-^n71Il]BS  lllJIDISOI] 


il  !   AMKS    MADISON,    "Father 
of  tlic  Constitution, '  and  Iburtli 
President  of  tlie  United  States, 
'•    /  was  l>orn  Marcli  i6,  1757,  and 
died  at  his   home  in  Virginia, 
Iiine  28,   1836.     The  name  of 
l.iuies  Madison  is  inseparabl)  con- 
netted  with  most  of  tlie  imix)rtant 
events  in  that  heroic  i)eriod  of  our 
country  during  which  the  founda- 
tions of  this  great   republic  were 
laid.  He  was  the  last  of  the  founders 
of  the   Gsnstitution   of   ihe    United 
States  to    he   called    to    his    eternal 
reward. 

The  Madison  family  were  among 
the  early  emigrants  to  the  New  World, 
landing  u|K)n  the  shores  of  the  Chesa- 
|>eake  Imt  15  years  after  the  settle- 
ment of  Jamestown.  The  father  of 
James  Nfadison  was  an  opulent 
planter,  residing  uiwn  a  very  fine  es- 
tate called  "  Mont|>efier,"  Orange  Co., 
Va.  The  mansion  was  situated  in 
the  midst  of  scenery  highly  pictur- 
esque and  romantic,  on  the  west  side 
of  South-west  Mountain,  ;it  the  foot  of 
Blue  Ridge.  It  was  Imt  25  miles  from  the  home  of 
Jefferson  at  Monticello.  The  closest  i)ersonal  and 
lolitical  attachment  existed  between  these  illustrious 
men,  from  their  early  youth  until  death. 

The  early  education  of  Mr.  Madison  wasconducteti 
mostly  at  home  under  a  privite  tutor,  .^t  the  age  of 
18  he  was  sent  to  Princeton  College,  in  New  Jersey. 
Here  he  applied  himself  to  study  with  the  most  im- 


prudent zeal;  allowing  himself,  for  months,  but  three 
hours' slccj)  out  of  tlic  za,.  His  health  tluis  became  so 
seriously  impaired  that  he  never  recovered  any  vigor 
of  constitution.  He  graduated  in  177  1.  with  a  feeble 
body,  with  a  character  of  utmost  purity,  and  with  a 
mind  highly  disciplined  and  richly  stored  with  learning 
which  embellished  and  gave  proficiency  to  his  subs( 
quent  career. 

Returning  to  Virginia,  he  commenced  the  study  ot 
law  and  a  course  of  extensive  and  systematic  reading. 
This  educational  course,  the  spirit  of  the  times  in 
which  he  lived,  and  the  society  with  which  he  asso- 
ciated, all  combined  to  inspire  him  with  a  strong 
love  of  liberty,  and  to  train  him  for  his  life-work  ot 
a  statesman.  Being  naturally  of  a  religious  turn  of 
mind,  and  his  frail  health  leading  him  to  think  that 
his  life  was  not  to  be  long,  he  ditected  esjiecial  atten- 
tion to  theological  studies.  Endowed  with  a  mind 
singularly  free  from  passion  and  i)rejudice,  and  with 
almost  unequalled  powers  of  reasoning,  he  weighed 
all  the  arguments  for  and  against  revealed  religion, 
until  his  f.iith  became  so  estalilished  as  never  to 
l>e  shaken. 

In  the  spring  of  1776,  when  26  years  of  age,  he 
was  elected  a  member  of  the  Virginia  Convention,  to 
frame  the  constitution  of  the  State.  The  next  year 
('777).  he  was  a  candidate  for  the  General  .Assembly. 
He  refused  to  treat  the  whisky-lovir.g  voters,  and 
consecpiently  lost  his  election  ;  but  those  who  had 
witnessed  the  talent,  energy  and  public  spirit  of  the 
modest  young  man,  enlisted  themselves  in  his  behalf, 
and  he  was  appointed  to  the    Kxecnlive  Council. 

Iloih  I'atrick  Henry  and  Thomas  Jefferson  were 
Ciovernors  of  Virginia  while  Mr.  Madison  remained 
member  of  the  Council ;    and  their  appreciation  oi  hi* 


32 


JAMES  MADISON. 


mtellectual,  social  and  moral  worth,  contributed  not 
a  little  to  his  subsequent  eminence.  In  the  year 
1780,  he  was  elected  a  member  of  the  Continental 
Congress.  Here  he  met  the  most  illustrious  men  in 
our  land,  and  he  was  immediately  assigned  to  one  of 
the  most  conspicuous  positions  among  them. 

For  three  years  Mr.  Madison  continued  in  Con- 
gress, one  of  its  most  active  and  influential  members. 
In  the  year  1784,  his  term  having  expired,  he  was 
elected  a  member  of  the  Virginia  Legislature. 

No  man  felt  more  deeply  than  Mr.  Madison  the 
utter  inefficiency  of  the  old  confederacy,  with  no  na- 
tional government,  with  no  power  to  form  treaties 
which  would  be  binding,  or  to  enforce  law.  There 
was  not  any  State  more  prominent  than  Virginia  in 
the  declaration,  that  an  efficient  national  government 
must  be  formed.  In  January,  1786,  Mr.  Madison 
carried  a  resolution  through  the  (ieneral  Assemlily  of 
Virginia,  inviting  the  other  States  to  appoint  commis- 
sioners to  meet  in  convention  at  Annapolis  to  discuss 
this  subject.  Five  States  only  were  represented.  The 
convention,  however,  issued  another  call,  drawn  up 
by  Mr.  Madison,  urging  all  the  States  to  send  their 
delegates  to  Philadelphia,  in  May,  1787,  to  draft 
a  Constitution  for  the  United  States,  to  take  the  place 
of  that  Confederate  League.  The  delegates  met  at 
the  time  appointed.  Every  State  but  Rhode  Island 
was  represented.  George  Washington  was  chosen 
president  of  the  convention;  and  the  present  Consti- 
tution of  the  United  States  was  then  and  there  formed. 
There  was,  perhaps,  no  mind  and  no  pen  more  ac- 
tive in  framing  this  immortal  document  than  the  mind 
and  the  pen  of  James  Madison. 

The  Constitution,  adopted  by  a' vote  81  to  79,  was 
to  be  presented  to  the  several  States  for  acceptance. 
But  grave  solicitude  was  felt.  Should  it  be  rejected 
we  should  be  left  but  a  conglomeration  of  independent 
States,  with  but  little  jxiwer  at  home  and  little  lespect 
abroad.  Mr.  Madison  was  selected  by  the  conven- 
tion to  draw  up  an  address  to  the  people  of  the  United 
States,  expounding  the  principles  of  the  Constitution, 
and  urging  its  adoption.  There  was  great  opposition 
to  it  at  first,  but  it  at  length  triumphed  over  all,  and 
went  into  effect  in  1789. 

Mr.  Madison  was  elected  to  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives in  the  first  Congress,  and  soon  became  the 
avowed  leader  of  the  Republican  party.  While  in 
New  York  attending  Congress,  he  met  Mrs.  Todd,  a 
young  widow  of  remarkable  jxiwer  of  fascination, 
whom  he  married.  She  was  in  person  and  character 
queenly,  and  probably  no  lady  has  thus  far  occu])ied 
so  prominent  a  position  in  the  very  peculiar  society 
which  has  constituted  our  republican  court  as  Mrs. 
Madison. 

Mr.  Madison  served  as  Secretary  of  State  under 
Jefferson,  and  at  the  close  of  his  administration 
was  chosen  President.  At  this  time  the  encroach- 
ments of  England  had  brought  us  to  the  verge  of  war.  , 


British  orders  in  council  destioyed  our  commerce,  and 
our  flag  was  exposed  to  constant  insult.  Mr.  Madison 
was  a  man  of  peace.  Scholarly  in  his  taste,  retiring 
in  his  disposition,  war  had  no  charms  for  him.  But  the 
meekest  spirit  can  be  roused.  It  makes  one's  blood 
boil,  even  now,  to  think  of  an  American  ship  brought 
to,  upon  the  ocean,  by  the  guns  of  an  English  cruiser. 
A  young  lieutenant  steps  on  board  and  orders  the 
crew  to  be  paraded  before  him.  With  great  nonchal- 
ance he  selects  any  number  whom  he  may  please  to 
designate  as  British  subjects ;  orders  them  down  the 
ship's  side  into  his  boat;  and  places  them  on  the  gun- 
deck  of  his  man-of-war,  to  fight,  by  compulsion,  the 
battles  of  England.  This  right  of  search  and  im- 
pressment, no  efforts  of  our  Government  could  induce 
the  British  cabinet  to  relinquish. 

On  the  1 8th  of  June,  r8r2.  President  Madison  gave 
his  approval  to  an  act  of  Congress  declaring  war 
against  Great  Britain.  Notwithstanding  the  bitter 
hostility  of  the  Federal  party  to  the  war,  the  country 
in  general  approved;  and  Mr.  Madison,  on  the  4th 
of  March,  r8i3,  was  re-elected  by  a  large  majority, 
and  entered  upon  his  second  term  of  office.  This  is 
not  the  place  to  describe  the  various  adventures  of 
this  war  on  the  land  and  on  the  water.  Our  infanl 
navy  then  laid  the  foundations  of  its  renown  in  grap- 
pling with  the  most  formidable  power  which  ever 
swept  the  seas.  The  contest  commenced  in  earnest 
by  the  appearance  of  a  British  fleet,  early  in  February, 
1813,  in  Chesapeake  Bay,  declaring  nearly  the  whole 
coast  of  the  LTnited  States  under  blockade. 

The  Emperor  of  Russia  offered  his  services  as  me 
ditator.  America  accepted ;  England  refused.  A  Brit- 
ish force  of  five  thousand  men  landed  on  the  banks 
of  the  Patuxet  River,  near  its  entrance  into  Chesa- 
peake Bay,  and  marched  rapidly,  by  way  of  Bladens- 
burg,  upon  Washington. 

The  straggling  little  city  of  Washington  was  thrown 
into  consternation.  The  cannon  of  the  brief  conflict 
at  Bladensburg  echoed  through  the  streets  of  the 
metropolis.  The  whole  population  fled  from  the  city. 
The  President,  leaving  Mrs.  Madison  in  the  White 
House,  with  her  carriage  drawn  up  at  the  doer  to 
await  his  speedy  return,  hurried  to  meet  the  officers 
in  a  council  of  war.  He  met  our  troops  utterly  routed 
and  he  could  not  go  back  without  danger  of  being 
captured.  But  few  hours  elapsed  ere  the  Presidentiaf 
Mansion,  the  Capitol,  and  all  the  public  buildings  in 
Washington  were  in  flames. 

The  war  closed  after  two  years  of  fighting,  and  on 
Feb.  r3,  1815, the  treaty  of  peace  was  signed  atGhent. 

On  the  4th  of  March,  1817,  his  second  term  of 
office  expired,  and  he  resigned  the  Presidential  chair 
to  his  friend,  James  Monroe.  He  retired  to  his  beau- 
tiful home  at  Montpelier,  and  there  passed  the  re- 
mainder of  his  days.  On  June  28,  1836,  then  at  the 
age  of  85  years,  he  fell  asleep  in  death.  Mrs.  Madi- 
son died  July  iz,  1849. 


James  Monroe. 


\ 


FIFTH  PRESIDENT. 


35 


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AMKS  MONROE,  the  fifth 
.Presidentof  The  United  States, 
was  lx)rn  in  Westmoreland  Co., 
Va.,  April  28,  1758.  His  early 
life  was  passed  at  the  place  of 
nativity.  His  ancestors  had  for 
many  years  resided  in  the  prov- 
ince in  which  he  was  \x>m.  \\'hen, 
.It  17  years  of  age,  in  tiie  process 
of  completing  his  education  at 
William  and  Mary  College,  the  Co- 
lonial Congress  assembled  at  Phila- 
delphia to  deliberate  ujon  the  un- 
just and  manifold  oppressions  of 
Great  Britian,  declared  the  separa- 
tion of  the  Colonies,  and  promul- 
gated the  Declaration  of  Indepen- 
dence. Had  he  been  l«m  ten  years  before  it  is  highly 
probable  that  he  would  have  been  one  of  the  signers 
of  that  celebrated  instrument.  At  this  time  he  left 
school  and  enlisted  among  the  patriots. 

He  joined  the  army  when  everything  looked  hoije- 
less  and  gloomy.  The  number  of  deserters  increased 
from  day  to  day.  The  invading  armies  came  [wuring 
in ;  and  the  tories  not  only  favored  the  cause  of  the 
mother  country,  but  disheartened  the  new  recruits, 
who  were  sufficiently  terrifiL-d  at  the  prosinict  of  con- 
tending with  an  enemy  whom  they  had  been  taught 
to  deem  invincible.  To  such  brave  spirits  as  James 
Monroe,  who  went  right  onward,  undismayed  through 
difficulty  and  danger,  the  United  States  owe  their 
|x;'.:;:cal  enip.ncipalion.  The  young  cadet  joined  the 
ranks,  and  esjioused  the  cause  of  his  injured  country, 
with  a  finn  determination  to  live  o.   lie  with  her  strife 


for  liberty.  Finiily  yet  sadly  he  shared  in  the  mel- 
ancholy retreat  from  Harleam  Heights  and  White 
Plains,  and  accomiiaiiied  the  dispirited  army  as  it  fled 
before  its  foes  through  New  Jersey.  In  four  months 
after  the  Declaration  of  Independence,  the  patriots 
had  been  beaten  in  seven  battles.  At  the  battle  of 
Trenton  he  led  the  vanguard,  and,  in  the  act  of  charg- 
ing ujwn  the  enemy  he  received  a  wound  in  the  left 
shoulder. 

As  a  reward  for  his  bravery,  Mr.  Monroe  was  ])ro-l 
moted  a  captain  of  infantr)- ;  and,  having  recovered 
from  his  wound,  he  rejoined  the  army.  He,  however, 
receded  from  the  line  of  promotion,  by  becoming  an 
officer  in  the  staff  of  I^rd  Sterling.  During  the  cam- 
paigns of  1777  and  177S,  in  the  actions  of  Brandy 
wine,  Germantown  and  .Monmouth,  he  continued 
aid-de-camp;  but  becoming  desirous  to  regain  his 
Ix)sition  in  the  army,  he  exerted  himself  to  collect  ;i 
regiment  for  the  Virginia  line.  This  scheme  f.iiled 
owing  to  the  exhausted  condition  of  the  State.  Ujon 
this  failure  he  entered  the  office  of  Mr.  JeflTerson,  at 
that  period  Governor,  and  pursued,  with  considerable 
ardor,  the  study  of  common  law.  He  did  not,  however, 
entirely  lay  aside  the  knapsack  for  the  green  bag; 
but  on  the  invasions  of  the  enemy,  ser\ed  as  a  volun 
teer,  during  the  two  years  of  his  legal  pursuits. 

In  1782,  he  was  elected  from  King  George  county, 
a  meml)er  of  the  Leglislature  of  Virginia,  and  by  th.il 
l)ody  he  was  elevated  to  a  scat  in  the  Executive 
Council.  He  was  thus  honored  with  the  confidence 
of  his  fellow  citizens  at  23  years  of  age  ;  and  having 
at  this  early  period  di>played  some  of  that  ability 
and  aptitude  for  legislation,  which  were  afterwardu 
employed  with  unremitting  energy  for  the  public  good. 


36 


JAMES  MONROE. 


he  was  in  the  succeeding  year  chosen  a  member  of 
the  Congress  of  the  United  States. 
DeeplyasMr.  Monroefelt  the  imperfections  of  the  old 
Confederacy,  he  was  opposed  to  the  new  Constitution, 
".hinking,  with  many  others  of  the  Republican  party, 
that  it  gave  too  much  power  to  the  Central  Government, 
and  not  enough  to  the  individual  States.  Still  he  re- 
tained the  esteem  of  his  friends  who  were  its  warm 
supporters,  and  who,  notwithstanding  his  opposition 
secured  its  adoption.  In  1789,  he  became  a  member 
of  the  United  States  Senate;  which  office  he  held  for 
four  years.  Every  month  the  line  of  distinction  be- 
tween the  two  great  parties  which  divided  the  nation, 
the  Federal  and  the  Republican,  was  growing  more 
distinct.  The  two  prominent  iaeas  which  now  sep- 
arated them  were,  that  the  Republican  party  was  in 
sympathy  with  France,  and  also  in  favor  of  such  a 
strict  construction  of  the  Constitution  as  to  give  the 
Central  Government  as  little  jx)wer,  and  the  State 
Governments  as  much  [Xjwer,  as  the  Constitution  would 
warrant.  The  Federalists  sympathized  with  England, 
and  were  in  favor  of  a  liberal  construction  of  the  Con- 
stitution, which  would  give  as  much  ]X)wer  to  the 
Central  Government  as  that  document  could  possibly 
authorize. 

The  leading  Federalists  and  Republicans  were 
alike  noble  men,  consecrating  all  their  energies  to  the 
good  of  the  nation.  Two  more  honest  men  or  more 
pure  patriots  than  John  Adams  the  Federalist,  and 
James  Monroe  the  Republican,  never  breathed.  In 
building  up  this  majestic  nation,  which  is  destined 
to  eclipse  all  Grecian  and  Assyrian  greatness,  the  com- 
bination of  their  antagonism  was  needed  to  create  the 
light  equilibrium.  And  yet  each  in  his  day  was  de- 
nounced as  almost  a  demon. 

Washington  was  then  President.  England  had  es- 
poused the  cause  of  the  Bourbons  against  the  princi- 
ples of  the  French  Revolution.  All  Europe  was  drawn 
into  the  conflict.  We  were  feeble  and  far  away. 
Washington  issued  a  proclamation  of  neutrality  be- 
tween these  contending  ix>wers.  France  had  helped 
as  in  the  struggle  for  our  liberties.  All  the  despotisms 
of  Europe  were  now  combined  to  prevent  the  Frencli 
from  escaping  from  a  tyranny  a  thousand-fold  worse 
than  that  which  we  had  endured.  Col.  Monroe,  more 
magnanimous  than  prudent,  was  anxious  that,  at 
whatever  hazard,  we  should  help  our  old  allies  in 
their  extremity.  It  was  the  impulse  of  a  generous 
and  noble  nature.  He  violently  opposed  the  Pres- 
ident's proclamation  as  ungrateful  and  wanting  in 
magnanimity. 

Washington,  who  could  appreciate  such  a  character, 
developed  his  calm,  serene,  almost  divine  greatness, 
by  appointing  that  very  James  Monroe,  who  was  de- 
nouncing the  policy  of  the  Government,  as  the  minister 
of  that  Government  to  the  Republic  of  France.  Mr. 
Monroe  was  welcomed  by  the  National  Convention 
in  France  with  the  most  etithusiastic  demonsti>«tions. 


Shortly  after  his  return  to  this  countrv,  Mr.  Mon- 
roe was  elected  Governor  of  Virginia,  and  held  the 
office  for  three  yeais.  He  was  again  sent  to  France  to 
co-operate  with  Chancellor  Livingston  in  obtaining 
the  vast  territory  then  known  as  the  Province  of 
Louisiana,  which  France  had  but  shortly  before  ob- 
tained from  Spain.  Their  united  efforts  were  suc- 
cessful. For  the  comparatively  snwll  sum  of  fifteen 
millions  of  dollars,  the  entire  territor)'  of  Orleans  and 
district  of  Louisiana  were  added  to  the  United  States. 
This  was  probably  the  largest  transfer  of  real  estate 
which  was  ever  made  in  all  the  history  of  the  world. 

From  France  Mr.  Monroe  went  to  England  to  ob- 
tain from  that*  country  some  recognition  of  oui 
rights  as  neutrals,  and  to  remonstrate  against  those 
odious  impressments  of  our  seamen.  But  Eng- 
land was  unrelenting.  He  again  returned  to  Eng- 
land on  the  same  mission,  but  could  receive  no 
redress.  He  returned  to  his  home  and  was  again 
chosen  Governor  of  Virginia.  This  he  soon  resigned 
to  accept  the  position  of  Secretary  of  State  under 
Madison.  While  in  this  office  war  with  England  was 
declared,  the  Secretary  of  War  resigned,  and  during 
these  trying  times,  the  duties  of  the  War  Departmen: 
were  also  put  upon  him.  He  was  truly  the  armor- 
bearer  of  President  Madison,  and  the  most  efficient 
business  man  in  his  cabinet.  Upon  the  return  of 
peace  he  resigned  the  Department  of  War,  but  con- 
tinued in  the  office  of  Secretary  of  State  until  the  ex- 
piration of  Mr.  Madison's  adminstration.  At  the  elec- 
tion held  the  previous  autumn  Mr.  Monroe  himself  had 
been  chosen  President  with  but  little  opposition,  and 
upon  March  4,  1817,  was  inaugurated.  Four  years 
later  he  was  elected  for  a  second  term. 

Among  the  important  measures  of  his  Presidency 
were  the  cession  of  Florida  to  the  United  States;  the 
Missouri  Compromise,  and  the    "  Monroe  doctrine.' 

This  famous  doctrine,  since  known  as  the  "  Monroe 
doctrine,"  was  enunciated  by  him  in  1823.  At  that 
time  the  United  States  had  recognized  the  independ- 
ence of  the  South  American  states,  and  did  not  wish 
to  have  European  jxjwers  longer  attempting  to  sub- 
due portions  of  the  .American  Continent.  The  doctrine 
is  as  follows:  "That  we  should  consider  any  attempt 
on  the  part  of  European  powers  to  extend  their  sys- 
tem to  any  portion  of  this  hemisphere  as  dangerous 
to  our  peace  and  safety,"  and  "that  we  could  not 
view  any  interposition  for  the  purjwse  of  oppressing 
or  controlling  American  governments  or  provinces  in 
any  other  light  than  as  a  manifestation  by  Europear. 
powers  of  an  unfriendly  disjxisition  toward  the  United 
States."  This  doctrine  immediately  affected  the  course 
of  foreign  governments,  and  has  become  the  approved 
sentiment  of  the  L^nited  States. 

At  the  end  of  his  fecond  term  Mr.  Monroe  retired 
to  his  home  in  Virginia,  v.here  he  lived  unril  1830 
when  he  went  to  New  York  to  live  with  his  son-in- 
law.     In  that  city  he  died.on  the  4th  of  July.  1S31, 


John  Q.  Ada.ms. 


SIXTH  PR  RSI DR  NT. 


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'.'ft  -imIi  President  of 


ADAMS,  the 
the  United 
•M.iies,  was  born  in  the  rural 
home  of  his    honored    father, 
John  Adams,  in  Quincy,  Mass., 
on  the  I  ith  cf  July,  1767.   His 
moiher,  a  woman  of  e.vaited 
orth,  wattl\ed  over  his  childhood 
i  iring   the  almost   constant    ab- 
-  Mice  of  his  father.      When    but 
ight  years  of  age,  he  stood  with 
iiis  moiher  on  an  eminence,  listen- 
ing to  the  booming  of  the  great  bat- 
tle on  Bankets  Hill,  and  gazing  on 
upon  the  smoke  and  flames  billow- 
ing up  from    the   conflagration   of 
Charlestown. 

When  but  eleven  years  old  he 
took  a  tearful  adieu  of  his  mother, 
to  sail  with  his  fatner  for  Eurojjc, 
through  a  fleet  o!  hostile  British  cruisers.  The  bright, 
..iiimated  Iwy  siient  a  year  and  a  half  in  Paris,  where 
his  f.ither  was  associated  with  Franklin  and  l.ce  as 
minister  pieniixjientiary.  His  intelligence  attracted 
ihc  notice  of  these  distinguished  men,  and  he  received 
from  them  flattering  m.irks  of  attention. 

Mr.  John  Adims  had  scarcely  returned  to  this 
cou  .try,  in  1779,  ere  he  was  again  sent  abroad.  Again 
iol..i  (liiincy  accompanied  his  father.  At  Paris  he 
applied  himself  wiih  great  diligence,  for  six  months, 
toj'iidy;  then  aciompained  his  father  to  Holland, 
wnere  he  entered,  first  a  school  in  .Amsterdam,  then 
the  I'niversiiyat  I.eyden.  .Almut  a  year  from  this 
•ime,  in  1781,  when  the  manly  I  oy  was  but  fourteen 
yea*s  of  ape,  he  was  selected  1  y  Mr.  Dana,  our  min- 
ister to  the  Russian  court,  as  his  private  secretarj". 

In  this  st.h(X>l  of  incessant  lal)or  .nnd  of  cnobling 
f-ulturc  he  sjient  fourteen  months,  and  then  returned 
10  Holland  ihioiigh  Sweden,  Denmark,  Hanilmrg  and 
Bre  lien.  This  1<  ng  journey  he  took  alone,  in  the 
winter,  when  in  his  sixteenth  year.  Atzain  he  resumed 
ms  studies,  Mfider  a  pn"«te  tutor,  at  Hague.   Thence, 


in  the  spring  of  1782,  he  accompanied  his  fattier  v; 
Paris,  traveling  leisurely,  and  forming  acquaintance 
with  the  most  distinguished  men  on  the  ('cii'incnt 
examining  architectural  remains,  galleries  of  |  lintings 
and  all  renowned  works  of  art.  At  Paris  tie  again 
became  associated  witli  the  most  illustrious  men  of 
all  lands  in  the  contemplations  of  the  loftiest  icmixjral 
themes  which  can  engross  the  human  mind  Afte" 
a  short  visit  to  England  he  returned  to  Paris,  ana 
consecrated  all  his  energies  to  study  until  May,  1785, 
when  he  returned  to  .\nierica.  To  a  brilliant  young 
man  of  eighteen,  who  had  seen  much  of  the  world, 
and  »\ho  was  familiar wiih  the  etiquette  of  courts,  a 
residence  with  his  father  in  London,  under  such  cir- 
cumstances, must  have  been  extremely  attractive 
but  with  judgment  very  rare  in  one  of  his  age,  he  pre- 
ferred to  return  to  .America  to  complete  his  education 
in  an  .American  college.  He  wished  then  to  study 
law,  that  with  an  honorable  profession,  he  might  l>e 
able  to  obtain  an  independent  supjwrt. 

U|xjn  leaving  Harvard  College,  at  theageof  twentj- 
he  studied  law  for  three  years.  In  June,  1794,  be- 
ing then  but  twenty-seven  years  of  ape,  he  was  ap- 
IKjinted  by  Washington,  resident  minister  at  the 
Netherlands.  Sailing  from  Boston  in  July,  he  reacheo 
Ivondon  in  October,  where  he  was  immediately  admit- 
ted to  the  deliberations  of  Messrs.  Jay  and  Pinckncy, 
assisting  them  in  negotiating  a  commercial  treaty  with 
Clreat  Briiian.  After  thus  spending  a  fortnight  i. 
lx)ndoii,  he  |)rocecded  to  the  Hague. 

In  July,  1797,  he  left  the  Hague  logo  to  Portugal  as 
minister  pleni|X)tentiary.  On  his  way  to  Portugal 
u|xjn  arriving  in  Ix)ndon,  he  met  wiih  despatches 
directing  him  to  the  court  of  Beiiin,  but  rcquestir(; 
him  to  remain  in  London  until  he  should  receive  hi« 
instructions.  While  waiting  he  was  mairied  to  as 
American  lady  to  whom  he  had  l>een  previously  en- 
gaged,— Miss  Louisa  Catherine  Johnson,  daui^htei 
of  Mr.  Joshua  Johnson,  .American  con.sul  in  I  ondon 
a  lady  cndownii  with  that  b-rauty  and  ihos;  icconv 
plishment  which  omincnlly  fitted  her  !o  mov.-  .'n  ti4 
elevated  sphere  for  which  the  wm  v<«ft'^c<l 


40 


JOHN  QUINCY  ADAMS. 


He  reached  Berlin  with  his  wife  in  November,  1797  ; 
where  he  remained  until  July,  1799,  when,  having  ful- 
filled all  the  purixjses  of  his  mission,  he  solicited  his 
recall. 

Soon  after  his  return,  in  1802,  he  was  chosen  to 
the  Senate  of  Massachusetts,  from  Boston,  and  then 
was  elected  Senator  of  the  United  States  for  six  years, 
from  the  4th  of  March,  1804.  His  reputation,  his 
ability  and  his  experience,  placed  him  immediately 
among  the  most  prominent  and  influential  members 
of  that  body.  Especially  did  he  sustain  the  Govern- 
ment in  its  measures  of  resistance  to  the  encroach- 
ments of  England,  destroying  our  commerce  and  in- 
sulting our  flag.  There  was  no  man  in  America  more 
familiar  with  the  arrogance  of  the  British  court  upon 
these  points,  and  no  one  more  resolved  to  present 
a  firm  resistance. 

In  1809,  Madison  succeeded  Jefferson  in  the  Pres- 
idential chair,  and  he  immediately  nominated  John 
Qiiincy  Adams  minister  to  St.  Petersburg.  Resign- 
ing his  professorship  in  Harvard  College,  he  embarked 
at  Boston,  in  August,  1809. 

While  in  Russia,  Mr.  Adams  was  an  intense  stu- 
dent. He  devoted  his  attention  to  the  language  and 
history  of  Russia;  to  the  Chinese  trade;  to  the 
European  system  of  weights,  measures,  and  coins  ;  to 
the  climate  and  astronomical  observations  ;  while  he 
Kept  up  a  familiar  acquaintance  with  the  Greek  and 
Latin  classics.  In  all  the  universities  of  Europe,  a 
more  accomplished  scholar  could  scarcely  be  found. 
All  through  life  the  Bible  constituted  an  important 
part  ol  his  studies.  It  was  his  rule  to  read  five 
chapters  every  day. 

On  the  4th  of  March,  1817,  Mr.  Monroe  took  the 
Presidential  chair,  and  immediately  appointed  Mr. 
Adams  Secretary  of  State.  Taking  leave  of  his  num- 
erous friends  in  public  and  private  life  in  Europe,  he 
sailed  in  June,  1819,  for  the  United  States.  On  the 
i8th  of  August,  he  again  crossed  the  threshold  of  his 
home  in  Quincy.  During  the  eight  years  of  Mr.  Mon- 
roe's administration,  Mr,  Adams  continued  Secretary 
of  State. 

Some  time  before  '.he  close  of  Mr.  Monroe's  second 
term  of  office,  new  candidates  began  to  be  presented 
for  the  Presidency.  The  friends  of  Mr.  .\dams  brought 
forward  his  name.  It  was  an  exciting  campaign. 
Party  spirit  was  never  more  bitter.  Two  hundred  and 
sixty  electoral  votes  were  cast.  Andrew  Jackson  re- 
ceived ninety-nine;  John  Quincy  Adams,  eighty-four; 
William  H.  Crawford,  forty-one;  Henry  Clay,  thirty- 
seven.  As  there  was  no  choice  by  the  people,  the 
<luestion  went  to  the  House  of  Representatives.  Mr. 
Clay  gave  the  vote  of  Kentucky  to  Mr.  .^dams,  and 
he  was  elected. 

The  friends  of  all  the  disappointed  candidates  now 
;ombined  in  a  venomous  and  persistent  assault  upon 
Mr.  Adams.  There  is  nothing  more  disgraceful  in 
tfee  past  history  of  our  country  than  the  abuse  which 


»vas  poured  in  one  uninterrupted  stream,  upon  this 
high-minded,  upright,  patriotic  man.  There  never  was 
an  administration  more  pure  in  principles,  more  con- 
scientiously devoted  to  the  best  interests  of  the  coun- 
try, than  that  of  John  Quincy  Adams;  and  never,  per- 
haps, was  there  an  administration  more  unscrupu- 
lously  and  outrageously  assailed. 

Mr.  Adams  was,  to  a  very  remarkable  degree,  ab- 
stemious and  temperate  in  his  habits;  always  rising 
early,  and  taking  much  exercise.  When  at  his  home  in 
Quincy,  he  has  been  known  to  walk,  before  breakfast, 
seven  miles  to  Boston.  In  Washington,  it  was  said 
that  he  was  the  first  man  up  in  the  city,  lighting  his 
own  fire  and  applying  himself  to  work  in  his  library 
often  long  before  dawn. 

On  the  4th  of  March,  1829,  Mr.  Adams  retired 
from  the  Presidency,  and  was  succeeded  by  Andrew- 
Jackson.  John  C.  Calhoun  was  elected  Vice  Presi- 
dent. The  slavery  question  now  began  to  assume 
jX)rtentous  magnitude.  Mr.  Adams  returned  to 
Quincy  and  to  his  studies,  which  he  pursued  with  un- 
abated zeal.  But  he  was  not  long  permitted  to  re- 
main in  retirement.  In  November,  1830,  he  was 
elected  representative  to  Congress.  For  seventeen 
years,  until  his  death,  he  occupied  the  post  as  repre- 
sentative, towering  above  all  his  peers,  ever  ready  to 
do  brave  battle' for  freedom,  and  winning  the  title  of 
"the  old  man  eloquent."  Upon  taking  his  seat  in 
the  House,  he  announced  that  he  should  hold  him- 
self bound  to  no  party.  Probably  there  never  was  a 
member  more  devoted  to  his  duties.  He  was  usually 
the  first  in  his  place  in  the  morning,  and  the  last  to 
leave  his  seat  in  the  evening.  Not  a  measure  could 
be  brought  forward  and  escape  his  scrutiny.  The 
battle  which  Mr.  Adams  fought,  almost  singly,  against 
the  proslavery  party  in  the  Government,  was  sublime 
in  Its  moral  daiing  and  heroism.  For  persisting  in 
presenting  petitions  for  the  abolition  of  slavery,  he 
was  threatened  with  indictment  by  the  grand  jury, 
with  expulsion  from  the  House,  with  assassination  . 
but  no  threats  could  intimidate  him,  and  his  final 
triumph  was  complete. 

It  has  been  said  of  President  Adams,  that  when  his 
body  was  bent  and  his  hair  silvered  by  the  lapse  of 
fourscore  years,  yielding  to  the  simple  faith  of  a  little 
child,  he  was  accustomed  to  repeat  every  night,  before 
he  slept,  the  prajer  which  his  mother  taught  him  in 
his  infant  years. 

On  the  2ist  of  Feliruary,  1848,  he  rose  on  the  floor 
of  Congress,  with  a  paper  in  his  hand,  to  address  the 
speaker.  Suddenly  he  fell,  again  stricken  by  paraly- 
sis, and  was  caught  in  the  arms  of  those  around  him. 
For  a  time  he  was  senseless,  as  he  was  conve_\  ed  to 
the  sofa  in  the  rotunda.  With  reviving  conscious- 
ness, he  opened  his  eyes,  looked  calmly  around  and 
said  "  This  is  the  end  of  earth  ;"then  after  a  moment's 
pause  he  added,  " I  am  content"  These  were  the 
last    words  of    the    grand    "Old    Man    Eloquent." 


AXBREW  JACKSOX. 


SEVENTH  r RESIDENT. 


•AU££;Q|S'"eiMLlSC: 


>5. 


XDREW  JACKSON,  the 
seventh  Presidt-T.l  of  the 
United  States,  was  borii  in 
Waxhaw  settlenient,  N.  C, 
Marclj  15,  1767,  a  few  days 
ifter  his  father's  death.  His 
jiarents  were  |)Oor  emigrants 
fruni  Ireland,  and  took  u[» 
their  abode  in  Waxhaw  set- 
tlement, where  they  lived  in 
deei)est  iwverty 
Andrew,  or  Andy,  as  he  was 
universally  called,  grew  up  a  very 
rough,  rude,  turbulent  l>oy.  His 
features  were  coarse,  his  form  un- 
gainly; and  there  was  but  very 
little  in  his  character,  made  visible,  which  was  at- 
tractive. 

When  only  thirteen  years  old  he  joined  the  volun- 
teers of  Carolina  against  the  British  invasion.  In 
1781,  he  and  his  brother  Rol>ert  were  captured  and 
imprisoned  for  a  time  at  Camden.  A  British  officer 
ordered  him  to  brush  his  mud-spattered  boots.  "  I  am 
a  prisoner  of  war,  not  your  servant,"  was  the  reply  of 
the  dauntless  Ixiy. 

The  brute  drew  his  sword,  and  aimed  a  des|)erate 
Dlow  at  the  head  of  the  helpless  young  prisoner. 
Andrew  raised  his  hand,  and  thus  received  two  fear- 
ful gashes, — one  on  the  hand  and  the  other  upon  the 
head.  The  officer  then  turned  to  his  brother  Robert 
with  the  same  demand.  He  also  refused,  and  re- 
ceived a  blow  from  the  keen-edged  sabre,  which  quite 
disabled  him,  and  which  probably  soon  after  caused 
his  death.  They  suffered  muchother  ill-treatment,  and 
were  &nally  stricken  with  the  small-pox.  Their 
mother  was  successful  ^n    <i)itaining    their  exchange. 


and  took  her  sick  Iwys  home,  .\ftcr  a  long  illn.si 
.\ndrew  recovered,  and  ilie  death  of  his  mother  soon 
left  him  entirely  friendless. 

.\ndrew  supiwried  himself  in  various  ways,  s  i:h  as 
working  at  the  saddler's  trade,  leaching  school  and 
clerking  in  a  general  store,  until  1784,  when  he 
entered  a  law  office  at  Salisbur)',  N.  C.  He,  however, 
gave  more  attention  to  the  wild  amusements  of  ilie 
times  than  to  his  studies.  In  1788,  he  was  ap]x>intecl 
solicitor  for  the  western  district  of  North  Carolina,  01 
which  Tennessee  was  tlien  a  part.  This  involved 
many  long  and  tedious  journeys  amid  dangers  of 
every  kind,  but  Andrew  Jackson  never  knew  fear 
and  the  Indians  had  no  desire  to  repeat  a  skirmish 
witn  the  Sh.Trp  Knife. 

In  1791,  Mr.  Jackson  was  married  to  a  woman  who 
siip|X)sed  herself  divorced  from  her  former  husband. 
Great  was  the  surprise  of  l)Oth  parties,  two  years  later, 
to  find  that  the  conditions  of  the  divorce  had  just  l)een 
definitely  settled  by  the  first  husband.  The  marriage 
ceremony  was  |)erformed  a  second  time,  but  the  occur- 
rence was  often  used  by  his  enemies  to  bring  Mr. 
Jackson  into  disfavor. 

During  these  years  he  worked  hard   at   his    profes 
sion,  and  frequently  had  one  or  more  duels  on   hand, 
one  of  which,  when  he    killed  1  )ickenson,  was  esf)ec- 
ially  disgraceful. 

In  January,  1796,  the  Territory  of  Tennessee  then 
containing  nearly  eighty  thousand  inhabitants,  the 
l)eople  met  in  convention  at  Knoxville  to  frame  a  con- 
stitution. Five  were  sent  from  each  of  the  elevi. 
counties.  Andrew  Jackson  was  one  of  the  dclega'rrs 
The  new  Stale  was  entitled  to  iiut  one  niemlH.-r  in 
the  National  House  of  Representatives.  Andrew  JacV- 
son  was  chosen  that  member.  Mounting  his  horse  he 
rotle  to  Philcdelphia,  where  Congress   then    held  iij 


ANDRE  W  JACKSDN. 


sessions, — a  distance  of  about  eight   hundred    miles. 

Jackson  was  an  earnest  advocate  of  the  De:iio- 
ccatic  party.  Jefferson  was  his  idol.  He  admired 
Bonaparte,  loved  France  and  hated  England.  As  Mr. 
Jackson  took  his  seat,  Gen.  Washington,  whose 
second  term  of  otfice  was  then  e.xpi:ing,  delivered  his 
last  speech  to  Congress.  A  committee  drew  up  a 
■complimentary  address  in  reply.  Andrew  Jackson 
did  not  approve  of  the  address,  and  was  one  of  the 
twelve  who  voted  against  it.  He  was  not  willing  to 
say  that  Gen.  Washington's  adminstration  had  been 
"  wise,  firm  and  patriotic." 

Mr.  Jackson  was  elected  to  the  United  States 
Senate  in  1797,  but  soon  resigned  and  returned  home. 
Soon  after  he  was  chosen  Judge  of  the  Supreme  Court 
of  his  State,  which  position  he  held  for  si.x  years. 

When  the  war  of  t8i2  with  Great  Britian  com- 
menced, Madison  occupied  the  Presidential  chair. 
Aaron-Burr  sent  word  to  the  President  that  there  was 
an  unknown  man  in  the  West,  .Andrew  Jackson,  who 
would  do  credit  to  a  commission  if  one  were  con- 
ferred upon  him.  Just  at  that  time  Gen.  Jackson 
jffeied  his  services  and  those  of  twenty-five  hundred 
volunteers.  His  offer  was  accepted,  and  the  troops 
were  assembled  at  Nashville. 

As  the  British  were  hourly  expected  to  make  an  at- 
tack upon  New  Orleans,  where  Gen  Wilkinson  was 
in  command,  he  was  ordered  to  descend  the  river 
with  fifteen  hundred  troops  to  aid  Wilkinson.  The 
expedition  reached  Natchez;  and  after  a  delay  of  sev - 
eral  weeks  there,  without  accomplishing  anything, 
the  men  were  ordered  back  to  their  homes.  But  the 
energy  Gen.  Jackson  had  displayed,  and  his  entire 
devotion  to  ttie  comrfort  of  his  soldiers,  won  him 
golden  opinions ;  and  he  became  the  most  popular 
man  in  the  State.  It  was  in  this  expedition  that  his 
toughness  gave  him  the  nickname  of  "  Old  HickorA." 

Soon  after  this,  while  attempting  to  horsewhip  Col. 
Thomas  H.  Benton,  for  a  remark  that  gentleman 
made  about  his  taking  a  part  as  second  in  a  duel,  in 
which  a  younger  brother  of  Benton's  was  engaged, 
he  received  two  severe  pistol  wounds.  While  he  was 
lingering  upon  a  bed  of  suffering  ne«s  came  that  the 
Indians,  who  had  combined  under  Tecumseh  from 
Florida  to  the  L,ikes,  to  exterminate  the  white  set- 
tlers, were  committing  the  most  aw  fal  ravages.  De- 
cisive action  became  necessarj'.  Gen.  Jackson,  with 
his  fractured  bone  just  beginning  to  heal,  his  arm  in 
a  sling,  and  unable  to  mount  his  horse  without  assis- 
tance, gave  his  amazing  energies  to  the  raising  of  an 
army  to  rendezvous  at  Fayettesville,  Alabama. 

The  Creek  Indians  had  established  a  strong  for:  on 
one  of  the  bendsof  the  Tallapoosa  River,  near  the  cen- 
ter of  Alabama,  about  fifty  miles  below  Fort  Strother. 
With  an  army  of  two  thousand  men.  Gen.  Jackson 
traversed  the  pathless  wilderness  in  a  march  of  eleven 
days.  He  reached  their  fort,  called  Tohopeka  or 
Horse-shoe,  on  the  27th  of  March.  r8i4.     The  bend 


of  the  river  enclosed  nearly  one  hunared  acres  of 
tangled  forest  and  wild  ravine.  Across  the  narrow 
neck  the  Indians  had  constructed  a  formidable  breast- 
work of  logs  and  brush.  Here  nine  hundred  warriors, 
with  an  ample  suplyof  arms  were  assembled. 

The  fort  was  stormed.  The  fight  was  utterly  des- 
perate. Not  an  Indian  would  accept  of  quarter.  When 
bleeding  and  dying,  they  would  fight  those  who  en- 
deavored to  spare  their  lives.  From  ten  in  the  morn- 
ing until  dark,  the  battle  raged.  The  carnage  was 
awful  and  revolting.  Some  threw  themselves  into  the 
river;  but  the  unerring  bullet  struck  their  heads  as 
they  swam.  Nearly  ever}- one  of  the  nine  hundred  war- 
rios  were  killed  A  few  probably,  in  the  night,  swaro 
the  river  and  escaped.  This  ended  the  war.  The 
[X)wer  of  the  Creeks  was  broken  forever.  This  bold 
plunge  into  the  wilderness,  with  its  terriffic  slaughter, 
so  appalled  the  savages,  that  the  haggard  remnants 
of  the  bands  caiue  to  the  camp,  begging  for  peace. 

This  closing  of  the  Creek  war  enabled  us  to  con- 
centrate all  our  militia  uixsn  the  British,  who  were  the 
allies  of  the  Indians  No  man  of  less  resolute  will  ' 
than  Gen.  Jackson  could  have  conducted  this  Indian 
campaign  to  so  successful  an  issue  Immediately  he 
was  appointed  major-general. 

Late  in  .\ugust,  with  an  army  of  two  thousand 
men,  on  a  rushing  march,  Gen.  Jackson  came  to 
Mobile.  A  British  fleet  came  from  Pensacola,  landed 
a  force  upon  the  beach,  anchored  near  the  little  fort, 
and  from  both  ship  and  shore  commenced  a  furious 
assault  The  battle  was  long  and  doubtful.  .\t  lerigth 
one  of  the  ships  was  blown  up    and  the  rest  retired. 

Garrisoning  Mobile,  where  he  had  taken  his  little 
army,  he  moved  his  troops  to  New  Orleans. 
And  the  battle  of  New  Orleans  which  soon  ensued, 
was  in  reality  a  very  arduous  campaign.  This  won 
for  Gen.  Jackson  an  imperishable  name.  Here  his 
troops,  which  numbered  about  four  thousand  men, 
won  a  signal  victory  over  the  British  army  of  about 
nine  thousand.  His  loss  was  but  thirteen,  while  the 
loss  of  the  British  was  two  thousand  six  hundred. 

The  name  of  Gen.  Jackson  soon  began  to  be  men- 
tioned in  connection  with  the  Presidency,  but, in  1S24, 
he  was  defeated  by  Mr.  Adams.  He  was,  however, 
successful  in  the  election  of  1828,  and  was  re-elected 
for  a  second  term  in  1832.  In  1829,  just  before  he 
assumed  the  reins  of  the  government,  he  met  with 
the  most  terrible  affliction  of  his  life  in  the  death  of 
his  wife,  whom  he  had  loved  with  a  devotion  which  has 
l)erhaps  never  been  surpassed.  From  the  shock  of 
her  death  he  never  recovered. 

His  administration  was  one  of  the  most  n^cmcrabie 
in  the  annals  of  our  countr)';  applauded  oyone  party, 
condemned  by  the  other.  No  man  had  more  bitter 
enemies  or  warmer  friends.  At  the  expiration  of  his 
two  terms  of  office  he  retired  to  the  Hermitage,  where 
he  died  June  8,  1845.  The  last  years  of  Mr.  Jack- 
son's  life   were   that   of  a   devoted  Cliristian    man. 


Martin  Van^Burex. 


EIGHTH  rRESIDENT. 


V/ 


ARTIN  VAN  BUREV,  the 

eighth     President     of     the 

United  States,  was  l)orii  at 

Kiiiderhook,  N.  Y.,  Dec.   5, 

17S2.     He  died  at  the  same 

place,  July   24,    1862.      His 

'  I  l>L>dy   rests  in   the  cemeter)' 

•  -f         at  Kiiiderhook.     Above  it  is 

.1  plain  granite    shaft  fifteen  feet 

i^<        high,  hearing  a  simple  inscription 

M        about  hall  way  up   on    one    face. 

^        The  lot  is  unfenced,  unbordered 

or  unboui^dc'H  by  shrub  or  flower. 

There  '«  uut  ihtle  in  the  life  of  Martin  Van  Burtri 
of  ruman'  c  interest.  He  fought  no  battles,  engaged 
in  no  wild  adventures.  Thougli  his  life  w.is  stormy  in 
political  and  Intellectual  conflicts,  and  he  gained  many 
signal  victories,  his  days  passed  uneventful  in  those 
incidents  which  give  zest  to  biography.  His  an- 
cestors, as  his  name  indicate;,  were  of  Dutch  origin, 
and  were  among  the  earliest  emigrants  from  Holland 
to  the  banks  of  the  Hudson.  His  father  was  a  farmer, 
residing  in  the  old  town  of  Kinderhook.  His  mother, 
also  of  Dutch  lineage,  was  a  woman  of  su|>erior  intel- 
ligence and  exemplary  piety. 

.ie  was  decidedly  a  precocious  boy,  developing  un- 
usual activity,  vigor  and  s'.rength  of  mind.  At  the 
age  of  fourteen,  he  had  finished  his  academic  studies 
in  his  native  village,  and  commenced  the  study  of 
:aw.  As  he  had  not  a  collegiate  education,  seven 
years  of  study  in  a  law-oflice  were  reniiired  of  him 
Oeforc  he  could  be  admitted  to  the  bar.  Inspired  with 
JL  lofty  ambition,  and  conscious  of  his  i»owers,  he  pur- 
sued his  studies  with  indefjiig.ible  industry.  After 
spending  six  ye-ir*  in  an  office  in  His    native  village, 


he  went  to  the  city  of  Mew  York,  and  prosecuted  his 
studies  for  the  seventli  year. 

In  1S03,  Mr.  Van  liuren,  then  twenty-one  years  ol 
age,  commenced  the  practice  of  law  in  his  native  vil- 
lage. The  great  conflict  between  the  Federal  and 
Republican  party  was  then  at  its  height.  Mr.  Van 
Huren  was  from  the  beginning  a  |x>litician.  He  had, 
perhaps,  imbibed  that  spirit  while  listening  to  the 
many  discussions  which  had  been  carried  on  in  his 
father's  hotel.  He  was  in  cordial  sympnthy  with 
Jefferson,  and  earnestly  and  eloquently  esiwuscd  the 
cause  of  State  Rights;  though  at  that  time  the  Fed- 
eral party  held  the  supremacy  both  in  his  town 
and  State 

His  success  and  increasing  ruputation  led  him 
after  six  years  of  practice,  to  remove  to  Hudson,  th. 
county  seat  of  his  county.  Here  he  spent  seven  years 
constantly  gaining  strength  by  contending  in  th« 
courts  with  some  of  the  ablest  men  who  have  adorned 
the  bar  of  his  State. 

Just  before  leaving  Kinderhook  for  Hudson,  Mi. 
Van  Buren  married  a  lady  alike  distinguished  fot 
beauty  and  accomplishments.  After  twelve  short 
years  she  sank  into  the  grave,  the  victim  of  consunip. 
tion,  leaving  her  husband  and  four  sons  to  weep  ovei 
her  loss.  For  twenty-five  years,  Mr.  V'an  Buren  was 
an  earnest,  successful,  assiduous  lawyer.  The  record 
of  those  years  is  barren  in  items  of  public  interest. 
In  181  2,  when  thirty  years  of  age,  he  was  chosen  to 
the  Slate  Senate,  and  uave  his  strenuous  sup|)ort  to 
Mr.  .Madison's  admiiistration.  In  1815,  he  was  ap- 
l>ointed  Attorney-General,  and  the  next  year  moved 
to  Albany,  the  capil.il  of  the  State. 

'•Vhile  he  was  ackno.^'lL'dgcd  iis  one  of  the  most 
p. ominent  leaders  of  the   Democratic   party,   he   hnO 


48 


MARTIN  VAN  BUREN. 


the  moral  courage  to  avow  that  true  democracy  did 
not  require  that  "  universal  suffrage "  which  admits 
the  vile,  the  degraded,  the  ignorant,  to  the  right  of 
governing  the  State.  In  true  consistency  with  his 
democratic  principles,  he  contended  that,  while  the 
path  leading  to  the  privilege  of  voting  should  be  open 
to  every  man  without  distinction,  no  one  should  be 
invested  with  that  sacred  prerogative,  unless  he  were 
in  some  degree  qualified  for  it  by  intelligence,  virtue 
and  some  property  interests  in  the  welfare  of  the 
State. 

In  182  I  he  was  elected  ;,  member  of  the  United 
States  Senate;  and  in  the  same  year,  he  took  a  seat 
in  the  convention  to  revise  the  constitution  of  his 
native  State.  His  course  in  this  convention  secured 
the  approval  of  men  of  all  parties.  No  one  could 
doubt  the  singleness  of  his  endeavors  to  promote  the 
interests  of  all  classes  in  the  community.  In  the 
Senate  of  the  United  States,  he  rose  at  once  to  a 
"onspicuous  position  as  an  active  and  useful  legislator. 
In  1827,  John  Quincy  Adams  being  then  in  the 
Vresidential  chair,  Mr.  Van  Buren  was  re-elected  to 
che  Senate.  He  had  been  from  the  beginning  a  de- 
■ermined  opposer  of  the  Administration,  adopting  the 
■'State  Rights"  view  in  opposition  to  what  was 
'deemed  the  Federal  proclivities  of  Mr.  Adams. 

Soon  after  this,  in  1828,  he  was  chosen  Governorof 
the  State  of  New  York,  and  accordingly  resigned  his 
^eat  in  the  Senate.  Probably  no  one  in  the  United 
States  contributed  so  much  towards  ejecting  John  Q. 
\dams  from  the  Presidential  chair,  and  placing  in  it 
Andrew  Jackson,  as  did  Martin  Van  Buren.  Whether 
entitled  to  the  reputation  or  not,  he  certainly  was  re- 
garded througiiout  the  United  States  as  one  of  the 
most  skillful,  sagacious  and  cunning  of  politicians. 
It  was  supposed  that  no  one  knew  so  well  as  he  liow 
to  touch  the  secret  springs  of  action;  how  to  pull  all 
the  wires  to  put  his  machinery  in  motion ;  and  how  to 
organize  a  political  army  which  would,  secreily  and 
steplthily  accomplish  the  most  gigantic  results.  By 
these  powers  it  is  said  that  he  outv/itted  Mr.  Adams, 
Mr.  Clay,  Mr.  Webster,  and  secured  results  which 
few  thought  then  could  be  accomplished. 

When  Andrew  Jackson  was  elected  President  he 
appointed  Mr.  Van  Buren  Secretary  of  State.  This 
position  he  resigned  in  1831,  and  was  immediately 
appointed  Minister  to  England,  where  he  went  the 
same  autumn.  The  Senate,  however,  when  it  met, 
refused    to    ratify  the  nomination,    and  he  returned 


home,  apparently  untroubled ;  was  nominated  Vice 
President  in  the  place  of  Calhoun,  at  the  re-election 
of  President  Jackson ;  and  with  smiles  for  all  and 
frowns  for  none,  he  took  his  place  at  the  head  of  that 
Senate  which  hjd  refused  to  confirm  his  nomination 
as  ambassador. 

His  rejection  by  the  Senate  roused  all  the  zeal  of 
President  Jackson  in  behalf  of  his  repudiated  favor- 
ite ;  and  this,  probably  more  than  any  other  cause, 
secured  his  elevation  to  the  chair  of  the  Cliief  Execu 
tive.  On  the  20th  of  May,  1836,  Mr.  Van  Buren  re- 
ceived the  Democratic  nomination  to  succeed  Gen. 
Jackson  as  President  of  the  United  States.  He  was 
elected  by  a  handsome  majority,  to  the  delight  of  the 
retiring  President.  "  Leaving  New  York  out  of  the 
canvass,"  says  Mr.  Parton,  "the  election  of  Mr.  Van 
Buren  to  the  Presidency  was  as  much  the  act  of  Gen. 
Jackson  as  though  the  Constitution  had  conferred 
upon  him  the  power  to  appoint  a  successor. ' 

His  administration  was  filled  with  exciting  events- 
The  insurrection  in  Canada,  which  threatened  to  in  - 
volve  this  country  in  war  with  England,  the  agitation 
of  the  slavery  question,  and  finally  the  great  commer- 
cial panic  which  spread  over  the  country,  all  were 
trials  to  his  wisdom.  The  financial  distress  was  at- 
tributed to  the  management  of  the  Democratic  party, 
and  brought  the  President  into  such  disfavor  that  he 
failed  of  re-election. 

With  the  e.xceplion  of  being  nominated  for  the 
Presidency  by  the  "Free  Soil"  Democrats,  in  1848, 
Mr.  Van  Buren  lived  quietly  upon  his  estate  until 
his  death. 

He  had  ever  been  a  prudent  man,  of  frugal  habits, 
and  living  within  his  income,  had  now  fortunately  a 
competence  for  his  declining  years.  His  unblemished 
character,  his  commanding  abilities,  his  unquestioned 
patriotism,  and  the  distinguished  positions  which  he 
had  occupied  in  the  government  of  our  country,  se- 
cured to  him  not  only  the  homage  of  his  party,  but 
the  respect  ot  the  whole  community.  It  was  on  the 
4th  of  March,  1841,  that  Mr.  Van  Buren  retired  from 
the  presidency.  From  his  fine  estate  at  Lindenwald, 
he  still  exerted  a  powerful  influence  upon  the  politics 
of  the  country.  From  this  time  until  his  death,  on 
the  24th  of  July,  1862,  at  the  age  of  eighty  years,  he 
resided  at  Lindenwald,  a  gentleman  of  leisure,  of 
culture  and  of  wealth;  enjoying  in  a  healthy  old 
age,  probably  far  more  happiness  than  he  had  before 
experienced  amid  the  stormy  scenes  of  his  active  life- 


W.  H.  Harrison. 


NINTH  PRESIDENT. 


s- 


ILLIAM  HENRY  HARRI- 
SON, the  ninth   President  of 
the   United  States,  was  born 
at  Berkeley,  Va.,  Feb.  9,  1773. 
His  father,   Benjamin   Harri- 
son, was  in  comparatively  op- 
ulent circumstances,  and  was 
one  of  the  most  distinguished 
men  of  his  day.      He  was  an 
intimate    friend    of     George 
Washington,  w  as  early  elected 
'        a  member  of  the  Continental 
Congress,    and  was    conspicuous 
among  the  patriots  of  Virginia  in 
resisting  the  encroachments  of  the 
British  crown.     In  the  celebrated 
Congress  of  1775,  Benjamin  Har- 
rison   and    John    Hancock   were 
both  candidates  for  the  office  of 
speaker. 

Mr  Harrison  was  subsequently 
chosen  Governor  of  Virginia,  and 
was  twice  re-elected.  His  son, 
William  Henry,  of  course  enjoyed 
in  childhood  all  the  advantages  which  wealth  and 
intellectual  and  cultivated  society  could  give.  Hav- 
ing received  a  thorough  common-school  education,  he 
entered  Hamixien  Sidney  College,  where  he  graduated 
with  honor  soor.  after  the  death  of  his  fatlier.  He 
then  repaired  to  Philadelphia  to  study  medicine  under 
the  instructions  of  Dr.  Rush  and  the  guardianship  of 
Robert  Morris,  both  of  whom  were,  with  his  father, 
Vgners  of  the  Declaration  of  Indejjendence. 

Jiwn  the  outbreak  of  the  Indian  troubles,  and  not- 
withstanding the  'cmonstiances  of  his  friends,  he 
abandoned  his  medical  studies  and  entered  the  army, 
.laving  obtai"-''  a  commiision  of  Ensign  from  Presi- 


dent Washington.  He  was  then  but  19  years  old 
From  that  time  he  passed  gradually  upward  in  rank 
until  he  became  aid  to  General  Wayne,  after  whose 
death  he  resigned  his  commission.  He  was  then  A\y- 
pointed  Secretary  of  the  North-western  Territory.  This 
Teaitory  was  then  entitled  to  but  one  member  in 
Congress  and  Capt.  Harrison  was  chosen  to  fill  that 
josition. 

In  the  spring  of  1800  the  North-western  Territory 
was  divided  by  Congress  into  two  jwrtions.  The 
eastern  jxirtion,  comprising  the  region  now  embraced 
in  the  State  of  Ohio,  was  called  "  The  Territory 
north-west  of  the  Ohio."  The  western  portion,  which 
included  what  is  now  called  Indiana,  Illinois  and 
Wisconsin,  was  called  the  "Indiana  Territory."  Wil 
liam  Henry  Harrison,  then  27  years  of  age,  was  ap 
jxainted  by  John  Adams,  Governor  of  the  Indiana 
Territory,  and  immeiliately  after,  also  Governor  of 
Upper  Louisiana.  He  was  thus  ruler  over  almost  as 
extensive  a  re.ilm  as  any  sovereign  uixjn  the  globe.  He 
was  Superintendent  of  Indian  Affairs,  and  was  in- 
vested with  ix)wers  nearly  dictatorial  over  the  now 
rapidly  increasing  white  iwpulation.  The  ability  and 
fidelity  with  whi<:li  he  discharged  these  resjionsiLle 
duties  may  be  inferred  from  tlie  fact  that  he  was  four 
times  apiwinted  to  this  office — first  by  John  Adams, 
twice  by  Thomas  Jefferson  and  afterwards  by  Presi. 
dent  Madison. 

When  he  began  his  adminstration  there  were  but 
three  white  settlementsin  that  almost  lioundlcss  region, 
now  crowded  with  cities  and  resounding  with  all  the 
tumult  of  we.dth  and  traffic.  One  of  these  settlcnicnts 
was  on  the  Ohio,  nearly  opixjsite  lx)uisville;  one  at 
Vincennes,  on  the  Wabash,  and  the  thiid  a  French 
settlement. 

The  vast  wilderness  over  which  Gov.  Harrisoii 
reigned  was  filled  with  many  trilws of  Indians.  At>ou« 


U.  OF  ILL  LIB. 


WILLIAM  HENRY  HARRISON. 


the  year  1806,  two  extraordinary  men,  twin  brothers, 
of  the  Shawnese  tribe,  rose  among  them.  One  of 
these  was  called  Tecun^seh,  or  "  The  Crouching 
P  inther;"  the  other,  OUiwacheca,  or  "The  Prophet." 
Tecuniseh  was  not  only  an  Indian  warrior,  but  a  man 
of  great  sagacity,  far-reaching  foresight  and  indomit- 
able perseverance  in  any  enterprise  m  which  he  might 
engage.  He  was  inspired  with  the  highest  enthusiasm, 
and  had  long  regarded  with  dread  and  with  hatred 
the  encroachment  of  the  whites  upon  the  hunting- 
grounds  of  his  fathers.  His  brother,  the  Prophet,  was 
anorator,  who  could  sway  the  feelings  of  the  untutored 
I  ndian  as  the  gale  tossed  the  tree-tops  beneath  which 
they  dwelt. 

But  the  Prophet  was  not  merely  anorator:  he  was, 
iu  the  superstitious  minds  of  the  Indians,  invested 
with  the  superhuman  dignity  of  a  medicine-man  or  a 
magician.  With  an  enthusiasm  unsurpassed  by  Peter 
the  Hermit  rousing  Europe  to  the  crusades,  he  went 
from  tribe  to  tribe,  assuming  that  he  was  specially  sent 
by  the  Great  Spirit. 

Gov.  Harrison  made  many  attempts  to  conciliate 
the  Indians,  but  at  last  the  war  came,  and  at  Tippe- 
canoe the  Indians  were  routed  with  great  slaugliter. 
October  28,  1812,  his  army  began  its  march.  When 
near  the  Prophet's  town  three  Indians  of  rank  made 
their  appearance  and  inquired  why  Gov.  Harrison  was 
approaching  them  in  so  hostile  an  attitude.  After  a 
short  conference,  arrangements  were  made  for  a  meet- 
ing the  next  day,  to  agree  upon  terms  of  peace. 

But  Gov.  Harrison  was  too  well  acquainted  with 
the  Indian  character  to  be  deceived  by  such  protes- 
tations. Selecting  a  favorable  spot  for  his  night's  en- 
campment, he  took  every  precaution  against  surprise. 
His  troops  were  posted  in  a  hollow  square,  and  slept 
upon  their  arms. 

The  troops  threw  themselves  upon  the  ground  for 
rest;  but  every  man  had  his  accourtrements  on,  his 
loaded  musket  by  his  side,  and  his  bayonet  fixed.  The 
wakeful  Governor,  between  three  and  four  o'clock  in 
the  morning,  had  risen,  and  was  sitting  in  conversa- 
tion with  his  aids  by  the  embers  of  a  waning  fire.  It 
was  a  chill,  cloudy  morning  with  a  drizzling  rain.  In 
the  darkness,  the  Indians  had  crept  as  near  as  possi- 
ble, and  j'zst  then,  with  a  savage  yell,  rushed,  with  all 
the  desperation  which  superstition  and  passion  most 
highly  inflamed  could  give,  upon  the  left  flank  of  the 
little  army.  The  savages  had  been  amply  provided 
with  guns  and  ammunition  by  the  English.  Their 
war-whoop  was  accompained  by  a  shower  of  bullets. 

The  camp-fires  were  instantly  extinguished,  as  the 
light  aided  the  Indians  in  their  aim.  With  hide- 
Dus  yells,  the  Indian  bands  rushed  on,  not  doubting  a 
S|3eedy  and  an  entire  victory.  But  Gen.  Harrison's 
troops  stood  as  immovable  as  the  rocks  around  them 
until  day  dawned  ■-  they  then  made  a  simultaneous 
charge  with  the  bayonet,  and  swept  every  thing  be- 
fore   them,    and    completely    routing    the    foe. 


Gov.  Harrison  now  had  all  his  energies  tasked 
to  the  utmost.  The  British  descending  from  the  Can - 
adas,  were  of  themselves  a  very  formidable  force  ;  but 
with  their  savage  allies,  rusiiing  like  wolves  iVom  the 
forest,  searching  out  every  remote  farm-house,  burn- 
ing, plundering,  scalping,  torturing,  the  wide  frontier 
was  plunged  into  a  state  of  consternation  which  even 
the  most  vivid  imagination  can  but  faintly  conceive. 
The  war-whoop  was  resounding  everywhere  in  the 
forest.  The  horizon  was  illuminated  with  the  conflagra- 
tion of  the  cabins  of  the  settlers.  Gen  Hull  had  made 
tlie  ignominious  surrender  of  his  forces  at  Detroit. 
Under  these  despairing  circumstances,  Gov.  Harrison 
was  appointed  by  President  Madison  commander-in- 
chief  of  the  North-western  army,  with  orders  to  retake 
Detroit,  and  to  protect  the  frontiers. 

It  would  be  difficult  to  place  a  man  in  a  situation 
demanding  more  energy,  sagacity  and  courage;  but 
General  Harrison  was  tbund  equal  to  the  position, 
and  nobly  and  triumphantly  did  he  meet  all  the  re 
sponsibilities. 

He  won  the  love  of  his  soldiers  by  always  sharing, 
with  them  their  fatigue.  His  whole  baggage,  while 
pursuing  the  foe  up  the  Thames,  was  carried  in  a 
valise;  and  his  bedding  consisted  of  a  single  blanket 
lashed  over  his  saddle.  Thirty-five  British  officers, 
his  prisoners  of  war,  supped  with  him  after  the  battle. 
The  only  fare  he  could  give  them  was  beef  roasted 
before  the  fire,  without  bread  or  salt. 

In  1816,  Gen.  Harrison  was  chosen  a  member  of 
the  National  House  of  Representatives,  to  represent 
the  District  of  Ohio.  In  Congress  he  proved  an 
active  member;  and  whenever  he  spoke,  it  was  with 
force  of  reason  and  power  of  eloquence,  which  arrested 
the  attention  of  all  the  members. 

In  1 819,  Harrison  was  elected  to  the  Senate  of 
Ohio;  and  in  1824,  as  one  of  the  presidential  electors 
of  that  State,  he  gave  his  vote  for  Henry  Clay.  The 
same  year  he  was  chosen  to  the  United  States  Senate. 

In  1836,  the  friends  of  Gen.  Harrison  brought  him 
forward  as  a  candidate  for  the  Presidency  against 
Van  Buren,  but  he  was  defeated.  At  the  close  of 
Mr.  Van  Buren's  term,  he  was  re -nominated  by  his 
party,  and  Mr.  Harrison  was  unanimously  nominated 
by  the  Whigs,  with  John  Tyler  for  the  Vice  Presidency. 
The  contest  was  very  animated.  Gen.  Jackson  gave 
all  his  influence  to  prevent  Harrison's  election  ;  but 
his  triumph  was  signal. 

The  cabinet  which  he  formed,  with  Daniel  Webster 
at  its  head  as  Secretary  of  State,  was  one  of  the  most 
brilliant  with  which  any  President  had  ever  been 
surrounded.  Never  were  the  prospects  of  an  admin- 
istration more  flattering,  or  the  hopes  of  the  country 
more  sanguine.  In  the  midst  of  these  bright  and 
joyous  prospects.  Gen.  Harrison  was  seized  by  a 
pleurisy-fever  and  after  a  few  days  of  violent  sick- 
ness, died  on  the  4th  of  April ;  just  one  month  after 
his  inauguration  as  President  of  the  United  States. 


JoHX  Tyler. 


TENTH  PRESIDENT. 


S5 


1[N    TYLKR,     the    tenth 
csidentofthe  United  States. 
1 1  c  was  Iwrn  in  Charles-city 
I.  o.,  Va.,  March  29, 1790.   He 
was  the  favored  child   of  af- 
fluence and  high   social    po- 
sition.    .\t  the   early  age   of 
twelve,  John  entered  William 
and   .Mary  College  and  grad- 
uated with  much  honor  when 
I         but  seventeen  years  old.  After 
graduating,  he  devoted  him- 
self witli    great    assiduity  to   the 
study    of    law,    partly   with    his 
father   and   pirtly  with    Edmund 
Randolph,  one  of  the  most  distin- 
guished lawyers  of  Virginia. 

At  nineteen  years  of  age,  ne 
conjmenccd  the  practice  of  law. 
His  success  was  rapid  and  aston- 
ishing. It  is  said  that  three 
months  had  not  elapsed  ere  there 
was  scarcely  a  case  on  the  dock- 
i  et  of  the  court  in  which   he  was 

i.jt  retained.  When  but  twenty-one  years  of  age,  he 
was  almost  unanimously  elected  to  a  seat  in  the  State 
Legislature.  He  connected  himself  with  the  Demo- 
cratic party,  and  wannly  advocated  the  measures  of 
JefTerson  and  Madison.  For  five  successive  years  he 
was  elected  to  the  Legislature,  receiving  nearly  the 
unanimous  vote  or  his  county. 

\Vhcn  but  twenty-six  years  of  age,  he  was  elected 
a  member  of  Gjiigrcss.  Here  he  acted  earnestly  and 
ably  wi.h  the  Democratic  party,  opiwsing  a  national 
bank,  inter"-"'  improvements  by  the  General  <>>vcm- 


ment,  a  protective  tariff,  and  advocating  a  strict  con- 
stniction  of  the  Constitution,  and  the  most  careful 
vigilance  over  State  rights.  His  labors  in  Congress 
were  so  arduous  that  before  the  close  of  his  second 
temi  he  found  it  necessary  to  resign  and  retire  to  his 
estate  in  Charles-city  Co.,  to  recruit  his  health.  He. 
however,  soon  after  consented  to  take  his  seat  in  the 
State  Legislature,  where  his  influence  was  powerful 
in  promoting  public  works  of  great  utility.  With  a 
reputation  thus  canstantly  increasing,  he  was  chosen 
by  a  very  large  majority  of  votes,  Governor  of  his 
native  State.  His  administration  was  signally  a  suc- 
cessful one.     His  popularity  secured  his  re-election. 

John  Randolph,  a  brilliant,  erratic,  half-crazed 
man,  tlitn  represented  Virginia  in  the  Senate  of  the 
United  States.  \  portion  of  the  Democratic  party 
was  displeased  with  Mr.  Randolph's  wayward  course, 
and  brought  forward  John  Tyler  as  his  op|)onent, 
considering  him  the  only  man  in  Virginia  of  sufficient 
[xspularity  to  succeed  against  the  renowned  orator  of 
Roanoke.     Mr.  T)ler  was  the  victor. 

In  accordance  with  his  professions,  upon  taking  his 
seat  in  the  Senate,  he  joined  the  ranks  of  the  opixjsi- 
tion.  He  opjxDsed  the  tariff;  he  sjwke  against  and 
voted  against  the  bank  as  unconstitutional ;  he  stren- 
uously opjioscd  all  restrictions  ui»n  slavery,  resist- 
ing all  projects  of  internal  improvements  by  the  Gen- 
eral Government,  and  avowed  his  sympathy  with  Mr. 
Calhoun's  view  of  nullification  ;  he  declared  that  Gen. 
Jackson,  by  his  op|X>sition  to  the  nullifiers,  had 
abandoned  the  ])tinciples  of  the  Democratic  party. 
Such  was  Mr.  Tyler's  record  in  Congress, — a  record 
in  |)erfect  accordance  with  the  princijiles  which  he 
had  always  avowed. 

Returning  to  Virginia,  he  resumed  the  practice  of 
his  profession.     There  was  a  rjilit  in  the   Dcmocraiij 


56 


JOHN  TYLER. 


^arty.  His  friends  still  regarded  him  as  a  true  Jef- 
fersonian,  gave  him  a  dinner,  and  showered  compli- 
ments upon  him.  He  had  now  attained  the  age  of 
forty-six.  His  career  had  been  very  brilliant.  In  con- 
sequence of  his  devotion  to  public  business,  his  pri- 
vate affairs  had  fallen  into  some  disorder;  and  it  was 
not  without  satisfaction  that  he  resumed  the  practice 
of  law,  and  devoted  himself  to  the  culture  of  his  plan- 
tation. Soon  after  this  he  removed  to  Williamsburg, 
for  the  better  education  of  his  children ;  and  he  again 
look  his  seat  in  the  Legislature  of  Virginia. 

By  the  Southern  Whigs,  he  was  sent  to  the  national 
convention  at  Harrisburg  to  nominate  a  President  in 
7839.  The  majority  of  votes  were  given  to  Gen.  Har- 
rison, a  genuine  Whig,  much  to  the  disappointment  of 
the  South,  who  wished  for  Henry  Clay.  To  concili- 
ate the  Southern  Whigs  and  to  secure  their  vote,  the 
convention  then  nominated  John  Tyler  for  "Vice  Pres- 
ident. It  was  well  known  that  he  was  not  in  sympa- 
thy with  the  Whig  party  in  the  North:  but  the  Vice 
President  has  but  very  little  power  in  the  Govern- 
ment, his  main  and  almost  only  duty  being  to  pre- 
side over  the  meetings  of  the  Senate.  Thus  it  hap- 
pened that  a  Whig  President,  and,  in  reality,  a 
Democratic  Vice  President  were  chosen. 

In  1 841,  Mr.  Tyler  was  inaugurated  Vice  Presi- 
Jent  of  the  United  States.  In  one  short  month  from 
that  time.  President  Harrison  died,  and  Mr.  Tyler 
thus -;und  himself,  to  his  own  surprise  and  that  of 
the  whole  Nation,  an  occupant  of  the  Presidential 
chair.  This  was  a  new  test  of  the  stability  of  our 
institutions,  as  it  was  the  first  time  in  the  history  of  our 
country  that  such  an  event  had  occured.  Mr.  Tyler 
was  at  home  in  Williamsburg  when  he  received  the 
unexpected  tidings  of  the  death  of  President  Harri- 
son. He  hastened  to  Washington,  and  on  the  6th  of 
A^ril  vi/as  inaugurated  to  the  high  and  responsible 
office.  He  was  placed  in  a  position  of  exceeding 
delicacy  and  difficulty.  All  his  longlife  he  had  been 
opposed  to  the  main  principles  of  the  party  which  had 
brought  him  into  power.  He  had  ever  been  a  con- 
sistent, honc:t  man,  with  an  unblemished  record. 
Gen.  Harrison  had  selected  a  Whig  cabinet.  _  Should 
he  retain  them,  and  thus  surround  himself  with  coun- 
sellors whose  views  were  antagonistic  to  his  own?  or, 
on  the  other  hand,  should  he  turn  against  the  party 
which,  had  elected  him  and  select  a  cabinet  in  har- 
mony with  himself,  and  which  would  oppose  all  those 
views  which  the  Whigs  deemed  essential  to  the  pub- 
lic welfare?  This  was  his  fearful  dilemma.  He  in- 
vited the  cabinet  which  President  Hanrison  had 
Felected  to  retain  their  seats.  He  reccommended  a 
day  of  fasting  and  prayer,  that  God  would  guide  and 
bless  us. 

The  Whigs  carried  through  Congress  a  bill  for  the 
incorporation  of  a  fiscal  bank  of  the  United  States. 
The  President,  after  ten  days'  delay,  returned  it  with 
his  veto.       He   suggested,   however,  that  he  would 


approve  of  a  bill  drawn  up  upon  such  a  plan  as  he 
proposed.  Such  a  bill  was  accordingly  prepared,  and 
privately  submitted  to  him.  He  gave  it  his  approval. 
It  was  passed  without  alteration,  and  he  sent  it  back 
with  his  veto.  Here  commenced  the  open  rupture. 
It  is  said  that  Mr.  Tyler  was  provoked  to  this  meas- 
ure by  a  published  letter  from  the  Hon.  John  M. 
Botts,  a  distinguished  Virginia  Whig,  who  severely 
touched  the  pride  of  the  President. 

The  opposition  now  exullingly  received  the  Presi- 
dent into  their  arms.  The  party  which  elected  him 
denounced  him  bitterly.  All  the  members  of  his 
cabinet,  excepting  Mr.  Webster,  resigned.  The  Whigs 
of  Congress,  both  the  Senate  and  the  House,  held  a 
meeting  and  issued  an  address  to  the  people  of  the 
United  States,  proclaiming  that  all  political  alliance 
between  the  Whigs  and  President  Tyler  were  at 
an  end. 

Still  the  President  attempted  to  conciliate.  He 
appointed  a  new  cabinet  of  distinguished  Whigs  and 
Conservatives,  carefully  leaving  out  all  strong  party 
men.  Mr.  Webster  soon  found  it  necessary  to  resign, 
forced  out  by  the  pressure  of  his  Whig  friends.  Thus 
the  four  years  of  Mr.  Tyler's  unfortunate  administra- 
tion passed  sadly  away.  No  one  was  satisfied.  The 
land  was  filled  with  murmurs  and  vituperation.  Whigs 
and  Democrats  alike  assailed  him.  More  and  more, 
however,  he  brought  himself  into  sympathy  with  his 
old  friends,  the  Democrats,  until  at  the  close  of  his  term, 
he  gave  his  whole  influence  to  the  support  of  Mr. 
Polk,  the  Democratic  candidate  for  his  successor. 

On  the  4th  of  March,  1845,  he  retired  from  the 
harassments  of  office,  to  the  regret  of  neither  party,  and 
probably  to  his  own  unspeakable  relief.  His  first  wife. 
Miss  Letitia  Christian,  died  in  Washington,  in  1842; 
and  in  June,  1844,  PresidentTylev  was  again  married, 
at  New  York,  to  Miss  Julia  Gardiner,  a  young  lady  of 
many  personal  and  intellectual  accomplishments. 

The  remainder  of  his  days  Mr.  Tyler  passed  mainly 
in  retirement  at  his  beautiful  home, — Sherwood  For- 
est, Charles-city  Co.,  Va.  A  polished  gentleman  in 
his  manners,  richly  furnished  with  mformation  from 
books  and  experience  in  the  world,  and  possessing 
brilliant  powers  of  conversation,  his  family  circle  was 
the  scene  of  unusual  attractions.  With  sufficient 
means  for  the  exercise  of  a  generous  hospitality,  he 
might  have  enjoyed  a  serene  old  age  with  the  few 
friends  who  gathered  around  him,  were  it  not  for  the 
storms  of  civil  war  which  his  own  principles  and 
policy  had  helped  to  introduce. 

When  the  great  Rebellion  rose,  which  the  State-, 
rights  and  nullifying  doctrines  of  Mr.  John  C.  Cal- 
houn had  inaugurated.  President  Tyler  renounced  his 
allegiance  to  the  United  States,  and  joined  the  Confed- 
erates. He  was  chosen  a  member  of  their  Congress- 
and  while  engaged  in  active  measures  to  destroy,  by 
force  of  arms,  the  Government  over  which  he  had 
once  presided,   he   was  taken    sick   and  soon   died. 


J.  K.  Polk, 


1:LE  TTi.X  TIT  -PRESTDEXl: 


S9 


.T:\  VI  Iv^  IL  .I'Di/k, 


""iijij,-"' 


AMES  K.  POLK,  the  eleventh 

csident  of  the  United  States, 

was  Iwrn  in  Mecklenburg  Co., 

N.  C,  Nov.  2,  1795.     His  par- 

^\  ents  were   Samuel   and   Jane 

(Knox)  Polk,  the  former  a  son 

><f  Col.  Thomas  Polk,  who  located 

I       at  the  above  place,  as  one  of  the 

i       first  pioneers,  in  1735. 

In  the  year  1S06,  with  his  wife 
and  children,  and  soon  after  fol- 
lowed by  most  of  the  members  of 
the  I'olk  famly,  Samutl  Polk  emi- 
grated some  two  or  three  hundred 
miles  f.irther  west,  to  the  rich  valley 
of  the  Diiik  River.  Here  in  the 
midst  of  the  wilderness,  in  a  region 
which  was  subsequently  called  Mau- 
ry Co.,  they  reared  their  log  huts, 
and  established  their  homes.  In  the 
hard  toil  of  a  new  farm  in  the  wil- 
derness, James  K.  Polk  spent  the 
early  years  of  his  childhood  and 
youth.  His  father,  adding  the  pur- 
suit of  a  surveyor  to  that  of  a  farmer, 
'  gradually  increased  in  wealth  until 

he  became  one  of  the  leading  men  of  the  region.  His 
mother  was  a  superior  woman,  of  strong  common 
sense  and  earnest  ()iety. 

Very  early  in  life,  James  develoi)ed  a  taste  for 
reading  and  expressed  the  strongest  desire  to  obtain 
a  liberal  education.  His  mother's  training  had  made 
him  methodical  in  his  habits,  had  taught  him  punct- 
uality and  industrj-,  and  had  inspired  him  with  lofty 
principles  of  morality.  His  health  was  frail ;  and  his 
tather.  fearing  that  be  might  not  W  able  to  endure  a 


sedentary  life,  got  a   situation   for   him   behind   the 
counter,  hojjing  to  fit  him  for  commercial  pursuits. 

This  was  to  James  a  bitter  disa|)ixjintnient.  He 
had  no  taste  for  these  duties,  and  his  daily  tasks 
were  irksome  in  the  extreme.  He  remained  in  this 
uncongenial  occuiiation  but  a  few  weeks,  when  at  his 
earnest  solicitation  his  father  removed  him,  and  made 
arrangements  for  him  to  prosecute  his  studies.  Soon 
after  he  sent  him  to  Murfreesboro  Academy.  With 
ardor  which  could  scarcely  be  suri)assed,  he  pressed 
forward  in  his  studies,  and  in  less  than  two  and  a  half, 
years,  in  the  autumn  of  1S15,  entered  the  sophomore/ 
class  in  the  University  of  Xortli  Carolina,  at  Chapel' 
Hill.  Here  he  was  one  of  the  most  exemplary  of 
scholars,  punctual  in  every  exercise,  never  allowing 
himself  to  be  absent  from  a  recitation  or  a  religious 
service. 

He  graduated  in  1818,  with  the  highest  honors,  be- 
ing  deemed  the  best  scholar  of  his  class,  both  in 
mathematics  and  the  classics.  He  was  then  twenty- 
three  years  of  age.  Mr.  Polk's  health  was  at  this 
time  much  impaired  by  the  assiduity  with  which  he 
had  prosecuted  his  studies.  After  a  short  season  of 
relaxation  he  went  to  Nashville,  and  entered  the 
office  of  Felix  Grundy,  to  study  law.  Here  Mr.  Polk 
renewed  his  acquaintance  with  .Andrew  Jackson,  who 
resided  on  his  plantation,  the  Hermitage,  but  a  few 
miles  from  Nashville.  They  had  ])robably  been 
slightly  acquainted  before. 

Mr.  Polk's  father  was  a  Jeflersonian  Republican, 
and  James  K.  Polk  ever  adhered  to  the  same  iwliti- 
cal  faith.  He  was  a  [wpular  public  si)eaker,  and  was 
constantly  called  ujon  to  address  the  meetings  of  his 
party  friends.  His  skill  as  a  siH-'akcr  was  such  that 
he  was  jxjpularly  called  the  Na|iole<jn  of  the  stump. 
He  was  a  man  of  unblemished   morals,  genial  and 


/AMES  K.  POLK. 


courte«"us  in  his  bearing,  and  with  that  sympathetic 
nature  in  the  jo)  s  and  griefs  of  others  which  ever  gave 
him  troops  of  friends.  In  1823,  Mr.  Polk  was  elected 
to  the  Legislature  of  Tennessee.  Here  he  gave  his 
strong  influence  towards  the  election  of  his  friend, 
Mr.  Jackson,  to  the  Presidency  of  the  United  States. 

In  January,  1824,  Mr.  Polk  married  Miss  Sarah 
Childress,  of  Rutherford  Co.,  Tenn.  His  bride  was 
altogether  worthy  of  him, — a  lady  of  beauty  and  cul- 
ture. In  the  fall  of  1825,  Mr.  Polk  was  chosen  a 
member  of  Congress.  The  satisfaction  which  he  gave 
to  his  constituents  may  be  inferred  from  the  fact,  that 
for  fourteen  successive  years,  until  1839,  he  was  con- 
tinued  in  that  office.  He  then  voluntarily  withdrew, 
only  that  he  might  accept  the  Gubernatorial  chair 
of  I'^nnessee.  In  Congress  he  was  a  laborious 
member,  a  frequent  and  a  popular  speaker.  He  was 
always  in  his  seat,  always  courteous ;  and  whenever 
he  spoke  it  was  always  to  the  point,  and  without  any 
ambitious  rhetorical  display. 

During  five  sessions  of  Congress,  Mr.  Polk  was 
Speaker  of  the  House  Strong  passions  were  roused, 
and  stormy  scenes  were  witnessed  ;  but  Mr.  Polk  per- 
fomied  his  arduous  duties  to  a  very  general  satisfac- 
tion, and  a  unanimous  vote  of  thanks  to  him  was 
passed  by  the  House  as  he  withdrew  on  the  4th  of 
March,  1839. 

In  accordance  with  Southern  usage,  Mr.  Polk,  as  a 
candidate  for  Governor,  canvassed  the  State.  He  was 
elected  by  a  large  majority,  and  on  the  1 4th  of  Octo- 
ber, 1839,  took  the  oath  of  office  at  Nashville.  In  1841, 
his  term  of  office  expired,  and  he  was  again  the  can- 
didate of  the  Democratic  party,  but  was  defeated. 

On  the  4th  of  March,  1845,  Mr.  Polk  was  inaugur- 
ated President  of  the  United  States.  The  verdict  of 
the  country  in  favor  of  the  annexation  of  Texas,  exerted 
its  influence  upon  Congress  ;  and  the  last  act  of  the 
administration  of  President  Tyler  was  to  affix  his  sig- 
nature to  a  joint  resolution  of  Congress,  passed  on  the 
3d  of  March,  approving  of  the  annexation  of  Texas  to 
the  American  Union.  As  Mexico  still  claimed  Texas 
as  one  of  her  provinces,  the  Mexican  minister, 
Almonte,  immediately  demanded  his  passports  and 
J;ft  the  country,  declaring  the  act  of  the  annexation 
10  be  an  act  hostile  to  Mexico. 

In  his  first  message,  President  Polk  urged  that 
Texas  should  immediately,  by  act  of  Congress,  be  re- 
ceived into  the  Union  on  the  same  footing  with  the 
other  States.  In  the  meantime,  Gen.  Taylor  was  sent 


with  an  army  into  Texas  to  hold  the  country.  He  was 
sent  first  to  Nueces,  which  the  Mexicans  said  was  the 
western  boundary  of  Texas.  Then  he  was  sent  yiearly 
two  hundred  miles  further  west,  to  the  Rio  Grande, 
where  he  erected  batteries  which  commanded  the 
Mexican  city  of  Matamoras,  which  was  situated  on 
the  western  banks. 

The  anticipated  collision  soon  took  place,  and  wai 
was  declared  against  Mexico  by  President  Polk.  The 
war  was  pushed  forward  by  Mr.  Polk's  administration 
with  great  vigor.  Gen.  Taylor,  whose  army  was  first 
called  one  of  "observation,"  then  of  "occupation," 
then  of  "  invasion, "was  sent  forward  to  Monterey.  The 
feeble  Mexicans,  in  every  encounter,  were  hopelessly 
ana  awfully  slaughtered.  The  day  of  judgement 
alone  can  reveal  the  misery  which  this  war  caused. 
It  v/as  by  the  ingenuity  of  Mr.  Polk's  administration 
that  the  war  was  brought  on. 

'To  the  victors  belong  the  spoils."  Mexico  was 
prostrate  before  us.  Her  capital  was  in  our  hands. 
We  now  consented  to  peace  uixin  the  condition  that 
Mexico  should  surrender  to  us,  in  addition  to  Texas, 
all  of  New  Mexico,  and  all  of  Upper  and  Lower  Cal- 
ifornia. This  new  demand  embraced,  exclusive  of 
Texas,  eight  hundred  thousand  square  miles.  This 
was  an  extent  of  territory  equal  to  nine  States  of  the 
size  of  New  York.  Thus  slavery  was  securing  eighteen 
majestic  States  to  be  added  to  the  Union.  There  were 
some  Americans  who  thought  it  all  right:  there  were 
others  who  thought  it  all  wrong.  In  the  prosecution 
of  this  war,  we  expended  twenty  thousand  lives  and 
more  than  a  hundred  million  of  dollars.  Of  this 
money  fifteen  millions  were  paid  to  Mexico. 

On  the  3d  of  March,  1849,  Mr.  Polk  retired  from 
office,  having  served  one  term.  The  next  day  was 
Sunday.  On  the  5th,  Gen.  Taylor  was  inaugurated 
as  his  successor.  Mr.  Polk  rode  to  the  Capitol  in  the 
same  carriage  with  Gen.  Taylor;  and  the  same  even- 
ing, with  Mrs.  Polk,  he  commenced  his  return  to 
Tennessee.  He  was  then  but  fifty-four  years  of  age. 
He  had  ever  been  strictly  temperate  in  all  his  habits, 
and  his  health  was  good.  With  an  ample  fortune, 
a  choice  library,  a  cultivated  mind,  and  domestic  ties 
of  the  dearest  nature,  it  seemed  as  though  long  years 
of  tranquility  and  happiness  were  before  him.  But  the 
cholera — that  fearful  scourge — was  then  sweeping  up 
the  Valley  of  the  Mississippi.  This  he  contracted, 
and  died  on  the  15th  of  June,  1849,  in  the  fiftv-fourth 
year  of  his  age,  greatly  mourned  by  his  countrymen. 


Zachary  Taylor. 


TWELFTH  PRESIDENT. 


_rx 


:-V  \  A  A  A   \      \   S.    I    >   \      \  \\   \     ,  \    \  A-V^^.l-TT^ 


/A  (Iff  A  \\\     1  A  VLOXJ. 


ACHARY  TAYLOR,  iwolfth 
■'resident  of  the  .United  States, 
M ^Vt-^  :.,  was  born  on  tlie  24th  of  Nov., 
Il^iv  {  '/>'*-«•  '"  Orange  Co.,  Va.  His 
father,  Coloi>el  Taylor,  was 
:  '  a  Virginian  of  note,  and  a  dis- 
tinguished jjatiiot  and  soldier  of 
i  the  Revolution.  When  Zachary 
was  an  infant,  his  fatlier  with  his 
wife  and  two  children,  emigrated 
t  to  Kentucky,  where  he  settled  in 
-  the  pathless  wilderness,  a  few 
miles  from  Louisville.  In  this  front- 
ier home,  away  from  civilization  and 
all  its  refinements,  yjung  Zachary 
could  enjoy  but  few  social  and  educational  advan- 
tages. When  six  years  of  age  he  attended  a  common 
school,  and  was  then  regarded  as  a  bright,  active  l>oy, 
father  remarkable  for  blitntness  and  decision  of  char- 
acter He  was  strong,  feailess  and  self-reliant,  and 
<nanifested  a  strong  desire  to  enter  the  anny  to  fight 
the  Indians  who  were  ravaging  the  frontiers.  There 
is  little  to  l>e  recordc"d  of  the  uneventful  years  of  his 
childhood  oji  his  father's  large  but  lonely  plantation. 
In  1S08,  his  father  succeeded  in  obtaining  for  him 
the  commission  of  lieutenant  in  the  United  .States 
anny ;  and  he  joined  the  troops  which  were  stationed 
at  New  Orleans  under  Gen.  Wilkinson.  Soon  after 
this  he  njarricd  Miss  Margaret  Smith,  a  young  lady 
(rom  one  of  the  first  families  of  Maryland. 

Immediately  after  the  declaration  of  war  with  Eng- 
land, in  1S12,  Capt.  Taylor  (for  he  had  then  been 
promoted  to  that  rank)  was  put  in  command  of  Fort 
Harrison,  on  the  Wabash,  about  fifty  miles  above 
Vincennes.  This  fort  had  been  built  in  the  wilder- 
ness by  Gen.  HarTison,on  his  match  to  Tipjwcanoe. 
It  was  one  of  the  first  {Mints  of  attack  by  the  Indians, 
xd  l>y  Tecuojseh.     Its  garrison  consisted  of  a  broken 


company  of  infantry  numbering   fifty  men,    many  of 
whom  were  sick. 

Early  in  the  autumn  of  1812,  the  Indians,  stealthily, 
and  in  large  numbers,  moved  \\\ro\\  the  fort.  Their 
ajjproach  was  first  indicated  by  the  murder  of  two 
soldiers  just  outside  of  the  stockade.  Capt.  Taylor 
made  every  ]x>ssible  pre[)aration  to  meet  the  antici- 
pated assault.  On  the  4th  of  September,  a  band  of 
forty  painted  and  plumed  savages  came  to  the  fort, 
waving  a  white  (lag,  and  infomied  Capt.  Taylor  that 
in  the  morning  their  chief  would  come  to  have  a  talk 
with  him.  It  was  evident  that  their  object  was  merely 
to  ascertain  the  state  of  things  at  the  fort,  and  Capt. 
Taylor,  well  versed  in  the  wiles  of  the  savages,  kept 
them  at  a  distance. 

The  sun  went  down;  the  savages  disappeared,  the 
garrison  slept  upon  their  arms.  One  hour  before 
midnight  the  war  whoop  burst  from  a  thousand  lips 
in  the  forest  around,  followed  by  the  discharge  of 
musketry,  and  the  rush  of  the  foe.  Every  man,  sick 
and  well,  sprang  to  his  ixjst.  Every  man  knew  that 
defeat  was  not  merely  death,  but  in  the  case  of  cajv 
ture,  death  by  the  most  agonizing  and  prolonged  tor- 
ture. No  pen  can  describe,  no  immagination  can 
conceive  the  scenes  which  ensued.  The  savages  suc- 
ceeded in  setting  lire  to  one  of  the  block-houses^ 
Until  six  o'clock  in  the  morning,  this  awful  conflict 
continued.  The  savages  then,  baffled  at  every  |)oint, 
and  gnashing  their  teeth  with  rage,  retired.  Capt. 
Taylor,  for  this  gallant  defence,  was  promoted  to  the 
rank  of  major  by  brevet. 

Until  the  close  of  the  war,  MajorTa\  lur  was  pl.iced 
in  such  situations  that  he  saw  but  little  more  of  active 
service.  He  was  sent  far  away  into  the  depthsof  the 
wilderness,  to  Fort  Crawford,  on  Fox  River,  which 
empties  into  Green  IJay.  Here  there  was  but  little 
to  be  done  but  to  wear  away  the  tedious  hours  asona 
best  <x>uld.    There  were  no  books,  no  society,  no  in- 


64 


ZACHARY  TAYLOR. 


tellecluai  stimulus.  Thus  with  him  the  uneventful 
years  rolled  on  Gradually  he  rose  to  the  rank  of 
colonel.  In  the  Black-Hawk  war,  which  resulted  in 
the  capture  of  that  renowned  chieftain,  Col  Taylor 
took  a  subordinate  but  a  brave  and  efficient  part. 

For  twenty-four  years  Col.  Taylor  was  engaged  in 
the  defence  of  the  frontiers,  in  scenes  so  remote,  and  in 
employments  so  obscure,  that  his  name  was  unknown 
Leyond  the  limits  of  his  own  immediate  acquaintance. 
iln  the  year  1836,  he  was  sent  to  Florida  to  compel 
the  Seminole  Indians  to  vacate  that  region  and  re- 
tire beyond  the  Mississippi,  as  their  chiefs  by  treaty, 
iiac'  promised  they  should  do.  The  services  rendered 
tie:e  secured  for  Col.  Taylor  the  high  appreciation  of 
the  Government;  and  as  a  reward,  he  was  elevated 
;c  ;he  rank  of  brigadier-general  by  brevet ;  and  soon 
ifter,  in  May,  1838,  was  appointed  to  the  chief  com- 
nand  of  the  United  States  troops  in  Florida. 

After  two  years  of  sucli  wearisome  employment 
jmidst  the  everglades  of  the  peninsula,  Gen.  Taylor 
jbiained,  at  his  own  request,  a  change  of  command, 
.nd  was  stationed  over  the  Department  of  the  South- 
*est.  This  field  embraced  Lxauisiana,  Mississippi, 
.Uabama  and  Georgia.  Establishing  his  headquarters 
yl  Fort  Jessup,  in  Louisiana,  he  removed  his  family 
To  a  plantation  which  he  purchased,  near  Baton  Rogue. 
H>;re  he  remained  for  five  years,  buried,  as  it  were, 
fu-.m  the  worid,  but  faithfully  discharging  every  duty 
■jn\posed  upon  him. 

In  1846,  Gen.  Taylor  was  sent  to  guard  the  land 
between  the  Nueces  and  Rio  Grande,  the  latter  river 
tieing  the  boundary  of  Texas,  which  was  then  claimed 
"b)  the  United  States.  Soon  the  war  with  Mexico 
W£.;  brought  on,  and  at  Palo  Alto  and  Resaca  de  la 
PaJma,  Gen.  Taylor  won  brilliant  victories  over  the 
Mo.xicans.  The  rank  of  major-general  by  brevet 
was  then  conferred  \x\>on  Gen.  Taylor,  and  his  name 
■«as  received  with  enthusiasm  almost  everj-where  in 
the  Nation.  Then  came  the  battles  of  Monterey  and 
E  uena  Vista  in  which  he  won  signal  victories  over 
fc  rces  much  larger  than  he  commanded. 

His  careless  habits  of  dress  and  his  unaffected 
simplicity,  secured  for  Gen.  Taylor  among  his  troops, 
'■.\ e.  sobriquet  of  "Old  Rough  and  Ready.' 

The  tidings  of  the  brilliant  victory  of  Buena  Vista 
rlTead  the  wildest  enthusiasm  over  the  country.  The 
n.inie  of  Gen.  Taylor  was  on  every  one's  lips.  The 
■^X  hig  party  decided  to  take  advantage  of  this  wonder- 
fu/  popularity  in  bringing  forward  the  unpolished,  un- 
"  \'Tred,  honest  soldier  as  their  candidate  for  the 
Piesidency.  Gen.  Taylor  was  astonished  at  the  an- 
ncuncement,  and  for  a  time  would  not  listen  to  it;  de- 
cl.iringthat  he  was  not  at  all  qualified  for  such  an 
ofiice.  So  little  interest  had  he  taken  in  politics  that, 
foi  forty  years,  he  had  not  cast  a  vote.  It  was  not 
wnhout  chagrin  that  several  distinguished  statesmen 
who  had  been  long  years  in  the  public  ser\'ice  found 
fi.;ar  claims  set  aside  in  behalf  of  one  whose   name 


had  never  been  heard  of,  save  in  connection  with  Palo 
Alto,  Resaca  de  la  Palma,  Monterey  and  Buena 
Vista.  It  IS  said  that  Daniel  Webster,  in  his  haste  re- 
marked, "  It  is  a  nomination  not  fit  to  be  made." 

Gen.  Taylor  was  not  an  eloquent  speaker  nor  a  fine 
wnter  His  friends  took  possession  of  him,  and  pre- 
pared such  few  communications  as  it  was  needful 
should  be  presented  to  the  public.  The  popularity  of 
the  successful  warrior  swept  the  land.  He  was  tri- 
umphantly elected  over  two  opposing  candidates, — 
Gen.  Cass  and  Ex-President  Martin  Van  Buren. 
Though  he  selected  an  excellent  cabinet,  the  good 
old  man  found  himself  in  a  very  uncongenial  position, 
and  was,  at  times,  sorely  perplexed  and  harassed. 
His  mental  sufferings  were  very  severe,  and  probably 
tended  to  hasten  his  death.  The  pro-slavery  party 
was  pushing  its  claims  with  tireless  energy ,  expedi- 
tions were  fitting  out  to  capture  Cuba  ;  California  was 
pleading  for  admission  to  the  Union,  while  slavery 
stood  at  the  door  to  bar  her  out.  Gen.  Taylor  found 
the  political  conflicts  in  Washington  to  be  far  more 
trying  to  the  ner%'es  than  batdes  with  Mexicans  or 
Indians 

In  the  midst  of  all  these  troubles,  Gen.  Taylor, 
after  he  had  occupied  the  Presidential  chair  but  little 
over  a  year,  took  cold,  and  after  a  brief  sickness  of 
but  little  over  five  days,  died  on  the  9th  of  July,  1850. 
His  last  woids  were,  "  I  am  not  afraid  to  die.  I  am 
ready.  I  have  endeavored  to  do  my  duty."  He  died 
universally  respected  and  beloved.  An  honest,  un- 
pretending man,  he  had  been  steadily  growing  in  the 
affections  of  the  people;  and  the  Nation  bitterly  la- 
mented his  death. 

Gen.  Scott,  who  was  thoroughly  acquainted  with 
Gen.  Taylor,  gave  the  following  graphic  and  truthful 
description  of  his  character: — "  With  a  good  store  of 
common  sense,  Gen.  Taylor's  mind  had  not  been  en- 
larged and  refreshed  by  reading,  or  much  converse 
with  the  world.  Rigidity  of  ideas  was  the  conse- 
quence. The  fronriers  and  small  military  posts  had 
been  his  home.  Hence  he  was  quite  ignorant  for  his 
rank,  and  quite  bigoted  in  his  ignorance.  His  sim- 
plicity was  child-like,  and  with  innumerable  preju- 
dices, amusing  and  incorrigible,  well  suited  to  the 
tender  age.  Thus,  if  a  man,  however  respectable, 
chanced  to  wear  a  coat  of  an  unusual  color,  or  his  hat 
a  little  on  one  side  of  his  head;  or  an  officer  to  leave 
a  corner  of  his  handkerchief  dangling  from  an  out- 
side pocket, — in  any  such  case,  this  critic  held  the 
offender  to  be  a  coxcomb  (perhaps  something  worse), 
whom  he  would  not,  to  use  his  oft  repeated  phrase, 
'touch  with  a  pair  of  tongs.' 

"Any  allusion  to  literature  beyond  good  old  Dil- 
worth's  spelling-book,  on  the  part  of  one  wearing  a 
sword,  was  evidence,  with  the  same  judge,  of  utter 
unfitness  for  heavy  marchings  and  combats.  Inshore 
few  men  have  ever  had  a  more  comfortab'lc,  '•'>>«». 
saving  contempt   for  learning  of  every  kind.' 


Millard  Fillmore. 


T/IJRTEENTH  PRESIDENT. 


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->lYllLLARn  FILLIYIORE.^- 

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ILLARD  FILLMORE,  thi:- 
centh  President  of  the  United 
^tates,  was  born  at  Summer 
Hill,  Cayuga  Gj.,  N.  Y  .,  on 
the  7ih  of  Januar)',  iSoo.  His 
father  was  a  farmer,  and  ow- 
ig  to  misfortune,  in  humble  cir- 
amstances.  Of  his  mother,  tlie 
laughter  of  Dr.  Abiathar  Millard, 
'f  Pittsfield,  Mass.,  it  has  been 
>.ud  that  she  jjossessed  an  intellect 
of  verj-high  order,  united  with  much 
(>ersonal  loveliness,  sweetness  of  dis- 
jxjsition,  graceful  manners  and  ex- 
quisite sensibilities.  She  died  in 
1831 ;  having  lived  to  see  her  son  a 
young  man  of  distinguished  prom- 
ise, though  she  was  not  permitted  to  witness  the  high 
dignity  which  he  finally  attained. 

In  consojuence  of  the  secluded  home  and  limited 
means  of  his  father,  Millard  enjoyed  but  slender  ad- 
vantages for  education  in  his  early  years.  The  com- 
mon schools,  which  he  occasionally  attended  were 
very  imperfect  institutions;  and  books  were  scarce 
ind  expensive.  There  was  nothing  then  in  his  char- 
acter to  indicate  the  brilliant  career  upon  which  he 
was  about  to  enter.  He  was  a  plain  farmer's  boy ; 
intelligent,  good-looking,  kind-hearted.  The  sacred 
influences  of  home  had  taught  him  to  revere  the  Bible, 
and  had  laid  the  foundations  of  an  upright  character. 
When  fojncen  years  of  age,  l.is  father  sent  him 
some  hundred  miles  from  home,  to  the  then  wilds  of 
Livingston  County,  to  learn  the  trade  of  a  clothier. 
Ncai  the  mil  there  was  a  small  villiage,  where  some 


enterprising  man  had  commenced  the  collection  of  a 
village  librarj-.  This  proved  an  inestimable  blessing 
to  young  Fillmore.  His  evenings  were  sfient  in  read- 
ing. Soon  every  leisure  moment  was  occupied  with 
books.  His  thirst  for  knowledge  became  insatiate 
and  the  selections  which  he  made  were  continually 
more  elevating  and  instructive.  He  read  history, 
biography,  orator)-,  and  thus  gradually  there  was  en- 
kindled in  his  heart  a  desire  to  be  something  more 
than  a  mere  worker  with  his  hands ;  and  he  was  be* 
coming,  almost  unknown  to  himself,  a  well-informed, 
educated  man. 

The  young  clothier  had  now  attained  the  age  of 
nineteen  years,  and  was  of  fine  personal  apixjarance 
and  of  gentlemanly  demeanor.  It  so  hap])ened  that 
there  was  a  gentleman  in  the  neighborhood  of  ample 
pecuniar)-  means  and  of  benevolence, — Judge  Walter 
Wood, — who  was  struck  with  the  pre(X)ssessing  ap- 
j)carance  of  young  Fillmore.  He  made  his  acquaint- 
ance, and  was  so  much  impressed  with  his  ability  and 
attainments  that  he  advised  him  to  abandon  his 
trade  and  devote  himself  to  the  study  of  the  law.  The 
young  man  replied,  that  he  had  no  means  of  his  own, 
no  friends  to  help  him  and  that  his  previous  educa- 
tion had  l)een  ver)-  imperfect.  But  Judge  Wood  had 
so  much  confidence  in  him  that  he  kindly  offered  to 
take  him  into  his  own  office,  and  to  loan  him  such 
money  as  he  needed.  Most  gratefully  the  generous 
offer  was  accepted. 

There  is  in  many  minds  a  strange  delusion  abouO 
a  collegiate  education.  A  >oung  man  is  supjx)sed  to 
be  liber.illy  educated  if  he  has  gi.iduatetl  at  some  coU 
lege.  But  many  a  boy  loiters  through  university  \vxi  1 
4nd  then  enters  a  law  office,  who  is  by  no  meatu   U 


oi 


MILLARD  FILLMORE. 


well  prepared  to  prosecute  his  legal  studies  as  was 
Millard  Fillmore  when  he  graduated  at  the  clothing- 
mill  at  the  end  of  four  years  of  manual  labor,  during 
which  every  leisure  moment  had  been  devoted  to  in- 
tense mental  culture. 

In  1S23,  when  twenty-three  years  of  age,  he  was 
admitted  to  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas.  He  then 
went  to  the  village  of  Aurora,  and  commenced  the 
practice  of  law.  In  this  secluded,  peaceful  region, 
his  practice  of  course  was  limited,  and  there  was  no 
opportunity  for  a  sudden  rise  in  fortune  or  in  fame. 
Here,  in  the  year  1826,  he  married  a  lady  of  great 
moral  worth,  and  one  capable  of  adorning  any  station 
she  might  be  called  to  fill,— Miss  Abigail  Powers. 

His  elevation  of  character,  his  untiring  industr)% 
his  legal  acquirements,  and  his  skill  as  an  advocate, 
gradually  attracted  attention  ;  and  he  was  invited  to 
enter  into  partnership  under  highly  advantageous 
circumstances,  with  an  elder  member  of  the  bar  in 
Buffalo.  Just  before  removing  to  Buffalo,  in  1829, 
he  took  his  seat  in  the  House  of  Assembly,  of  the 
State  of  New  York,  as  a  representative  from  Erie 
County.  Though  he  had  never  taken  a  very  active 
part  in  politics,  his  vote  and  his  sympathies  were  with 
the  Whig  party.  The  State  was  then  Democratic, 
and  he  found  himself  in  a  helpless  minority  in  the 
Legislature ,  still  the  testimony  comes  from  all  parties, 
that  his  courtesy,  ability  and  integrity,  won,  to  a  very 
unusual  degn  e  the  respect  of  his  associates. 

In  the  autumn  of  1832,  he  was  elected  to  a  seat  in 
the  United  States  Congress.  He  entered  that  troubled 
irena  in  some  of  the  most  tumultuous  hours  of  our 
national  history.  The  great  conflict  respecting  the 
national  bank  and  the  removal  of  the  deposits,  was 
then  raging. 

His  term  of  two  years  closed  ;  and  he  returned  to 
his  profession,  which  he  pursued  with  increasing  rep- 
utation and  success.  After  a  lapse  of  two  years 
he  again  became  a  candidate  for  Congress;  was  re- 
elected, and  took  his  seat  in  1837.  His  past  expe- 
rience as  a  representative  gave  him  sttength  and 
confidence.  The  first  term  of  service  in  Congress  to 
any  man  can  be  but  little  more  than  an  introduction. 
He  was  now  prepared  for  active  duty.  All  his  ener- 
gies were  brought  to  bear  upon  the  public  good.  Every 
measure  received  his  impress. 

Mr.  Fillmore  was  now  a  man  of  wide  repute,  and 
his  popularity  filled  the  State,  and  in  the  year  1847, 
he   was   elected  Comptroller  of    the   State. 


Mr.  Fillmore  had  attained  the  age  of  forty-seven 
years.  His  labors  at  the  bar,  in  the  Legislature,  in 
Congress  and  as  Comptroller,  had  given  him  very  con- 
siderable fame.  The  Whigs  were  casting  about  to 
find  suitable  candidates  for  President  and  Vice-Presi- 
dent at  the  approaching  election.  Far  away,  on  thet 
waters  of  the  Rio  Grande,  there  was  a  rough  old 
soldier,  who  had  fought  one  or  two  successful  battles 
with  the  Mexicans,  which  had  caused  his  name  to  be 
proclaimed  in  tiumpet-tones  all  over  the  land.  But 
it  was  necessary  to  associate  with  him  on  the  same 
ticket  some  man  of  reputation  as  a  statesman. 

Under  the  influence  of  these  considerations,  tlie 
namesofZachary  Taylor  and  Millard  Fillmore  became 
the  rallying-cry  of  the  Whigs,  as  their  candidates  for 
President  and  Vice-Peesident.  The  Whig  ticket  was 
signally  triumphant.  On  the  4th  of  March,  1849, 
Gen.  Taylor  was  inaugurated  President,  and  Millard 
Fillmore  Vice-President,  of  the  United  States. 

On  the  9th  of  July,  1850,  President  Taylor,  but 
about  one  year  and  four  months  after  his  inaugura 
tion,  was  suddenly  taken  sick  and  died.  By  the  Con- 
stitution, Vice-President  Fillmore  thus  became  Presi- 
dent. He  appointed  a  very  able  cabinet,  of  which 
the  illustrious  Daniel  Webster  was  Secretary  of  State. 
Mr.  Fillmore  had  very  serious  difficulties  to  contend 
with,  since  the  opposition  had  a  majority  in  both 
Houses.  He  did  everything  in  his  power  to  conciliate 
the  South ;  but  the  pro-slavery  party  in  the  South  felt 
the  inadequacyof  all  measuresof  transient  conciliation. 
The  population  of  the  free  States  was  so  rapidly  in- 
creasing over  that  of  the  slave  States  that  it  was  in- 
evitable that  the  power  of  the  Government  should 
soon  pass  into  the  hands  of  the  free  States.  The 
famous  compromise  measures  were  adopted  under  Mr. 
Fillmcre's  adminstration,  and  the  Japan  Expedition 
was  sent  out.  On  the  4th  of  March,  1853,  Mr.  Fill- 
more, having  served  one  term,  retired. 

In  1856,  Mr.  Fillmore  was  nominated  for  the  Pres- 
idency by  the  "  Know  Nothing  "  party,  but  was  beaten 
by  Mr.  Buchanan.  After  that  Mr.  Fillmore  lived  in 
retirement.  During  the  terrible  conflict  of  civil  war, 
he  was  mostly  silent.  It  was  generally  supposed  that 
his  sympathies  were  rather  with  those  who  were  en- 
deavoring to  overthrow  our  institutions.  President 
Fillmore  kept  aloof  from  the  conflict,  without  any 
cordial  words  of  cheer  to  the  one  party  or  the  other. 
He  was  thus  forgotten  by  both.  He  lived  to  a  ripe 
old  age,  and  died  in  Buffalo.  N.  Y.,  March  8,    1874- 


A 

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Bft^^^i^^.  ^^K^w 

Fr-\xklix  Pierce. 


FOURTEENTH  PRESIDENT. 


71 


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t^ 


->FRflNKLIN  PIERCE. <-     -Si^: 


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^^^:^ 


I 


RANKLIN     PIERCE,   the 
fourteenth    President  of  the 
-•    nsBBcmivaiiwi   '-'"''"'  States,  was  bom  in 
'"^1"   X^'^I  Hillsborough,    N.    H.,    Nov. 
23,  1804.     His  father  was  a 
Revohiiionary  soldier,   who, 
with    his   own    strong    ami, 
hewed   out  a    home   in    the 
wilderness.     He  was  a  man 
of    inflexible    integrity;     of 
strong,  though   uncultivated 
mind,  and  an  uncompromis- 
ing Democrat.      The    mother   of 
'.  >■       Franklin  Pierce  was  all  that  a  son 
T        could  desire, — an  intelligent,  pru- 
dent, affectionate.  Christian  wom- 
an.    Franklin  was  the  sixth  of  eight  children. 

Franklin  was  a  very  bright  and  handsome  boy,  gen- 
erous, wami-hearted  and  brave.  He  won  alike  the 
love  of  old  and  young.  The  boys  on  the  play  ground 
loved  him.  His  teachers  loved  him.  The  neighbors 
looked  upon  him  with  pride  and  affection.  He  was 
by  instinct  a  gentleman;  always  speaking  kind  words, 
doing  kind  deeds,  with  a  peculiar  unstudied  tact 
which  taught  him  what  was  agreeable.  Without  de- 
veloping any  precocity  of  genius,  or  any  unnatural 
devotion  to  books,  he  was  a  good  scholar;  in  body, 
in  mind,  in  affections,  a  fmely-developed  boy. 

When  sixteen  years  of  age,  in  the  year  1820,  he 
entered  Riwdoin  Qjllcge,  at  Brunswick,  Me  He  was 
one  of  the  most  jxjpular  young  men  in  the  college. 
The  purity  cf  his  moral  character,  the  unvarying 
courtesy  of  his  demeanor,  his  rank  as  a  scholar,  and 


f;cnial  nature,  rendered  him  a  universal  favorite. 
There  was  something  very  i)eculiarly  winning  in  his 
address,  and  it  was  evidently  not  in  the  slightest  de- 
gree studied :  it  was  the  simple  outgushing  of  his 
own  magnanimous  and  loving  nature. 

Uixjn  graduating,  in  the  year  1824,  Franklin  Pierce 
commenced  the  study  of  law  in  the  office  of  Judge 
Woodbury,  one  of  the  most  distinguished  lawyers  of 
the  State,  and  a  man  of  great  private  worth.  Th« 
eminent  social  qualities  of  the  young  lawyer,  his 
father's  prominence  as  a  public  man,  and  the  brilliant 
l»litical  career  into  which  Judge  Woodbury  was  en' 
tering,  all  tended  to  entice  Mr.  Pierce  into  the  faci- 
nating  yet  perilous  path  of  political  life.  With  all 
the  ardor  of  his  nature  he  es[X)used  the  cause  of  Gen. 
Jackson  for  the  Presidency.  He  commenced  the 
practice  of  law  in  Hillsborough,  and  was  soon  elected 
to  represent  the  town  in  the  State  Legislature.  Here 
he  served  for  four  yeais.  The  last  two  years  he  was 
chosen  speaker  of  the  house  by  a  very  large  vote. 

In  1833,  at  the  age  of  twenty-nine,  he  was  elected 
a  member  of  Congress.  Without  taking  an  active 
part  in  debates,  he  was  faithful  and  lalx)rious  in  duty 
and  ever  rising  in  the  estimation  of  those  with  whom 
he  was  associatad. 

In  1837,  being  then  but  thirty-three  years  of  age, 
he  was  elected  to  the  Senate  of  the  United  States; 
taking  his  seat  just  as  Mr.  Van  Hurcn  commenced 
his  administration.  He  was  the  youngest  meml)erin 
the  Senate.  In  the  year  1834.  he  married  Miss  Jane 
Means  .\ppleton,  a  lady  of  rare  beauty  and  accom- 
plishments, and  one  admirably  fitted  to  adorn  every 
station  with  wiiich  her  husband  was  honoied    Of  the 


72 


FRANKLIN  PIERCE. 


three  sons  who  were  born  to  them,  all  now  sleep  with 
their  parents  in  the  grave. 

In  the  year  1838,  Mr.  Pierce,  with  growing  fame 
and  increasing  business  as  a  lawyer,  took  up  his 
residence  in  Concord,  the  capital  of  New  Hampshire. 
President  Polk,  upon  his  accession  to  office,  appointed 
Mr.  Pierce  attorney-general  of  the  United  States ;  but 
the  offer  was  declined,  in  consequence  of  numerous 
professional  engagements  at  home,  and  the  precariuos 
state  of  Mrs.  Pierce's  health.  He  also,  about  the 
same  time  declined  the  nomination  for  governor  by  the 
Democratic  party.  The  war  with  Mexico  called  Mr. 
Pierce  in  the  army.  Receiving  the  appointment  of 
brigadier-general,  he  embarked,  with  a  portion  of  his 
troops,  at  Newport,  R.  I.,  on  The  27  th  of  May,  1847. 
He  took  an  important  part  in  this  war,  proving  him- 
.self  a  brave  and  true  soldier. 

When  Gen.  Pierce  reached  his  home  in  his  native 
State,  he  was  received  enthusiastically  by  the  advo- 
cates of  the  Mexican  war,  and  coldly  by  his  oppo- 
nents. He  resumed  the  practice  of  his  profession, 
very  frequently  taking  an  active  part  in  political  ques- 
tions, giving  his  cordial  sup|)ort  to  the  pro-slavery 
wing  of  the  Democratic  party.  The  compromise 
measures  met  cordially  with  his  approval ;  and  he 
btrenuously  advocated  the  enforcement  of  the  infa- 
inous  fugitive-slave  law,  which  so  shocked  the  religious 
Sensibilities  of  the  North.  He  thus  became  distin- 
guished as  a  "Northern  man  with  Southern  principles.'' 
The  strong  partisans  of  slavery  in  the  South  conse- 
quently regarded  him  as  a  man  whom  they  could 
safely  trust  in  office  to  carry  out  their  plans. 

On  the  i2th  of  June,  1852,  the  Democratic  conven- 
tion met  in  Baltimore  to  nominate  a  candidate  for  the 
Presidency.  For  four  days  they  continued  in  session, 
=nd  in  thirty-five  ballotings  no  one  had  obtained  a 
two-thirds  vote.  Not  a  vote  thus  far  had  been  thrown 
for  Gen.  Pierce.  Tlien  the  Virginia  delegation 
brought  forward  his  name.  There  were  fourteen 
more  ballotings,  daring  which  Gen.  Pierce  constantly 
gained  strength,  until,  at  the  forty-ninth  ballot,  he 
received  two  hundred  and  eighty-two  votes,  and  all 
other  candidates  eleveh.  Gen.  Winfield  Scott  was 
t'le  Whig  candidate.  Gen.  Pierce  was  chosen  with 
great  unanimity.  Only  four  States — Vermont,  Mas- 
sachusetts, Kentucky  and  Tennessee  —  cast  their 
electoral  votes  against  him  Gen.  Franklin  Pierce 
was  therefore  inaugurated  President  of  the  United 
States   en    the  4th  of  March,    1853. 


His  administration  proved  one  of  the  most  stormy  our 
country  had  ever  experienced.  The  controversy  be 
tween  slavery  and  freedom  was  then  approaching  its 
culminating  point.  It  became  evident  that  there  was 
an  "  irrepressible  conflict  "  between  them,  and  that 
this  Nation  could  not  long  exist  "  half  slave  and  half 
free."  President  Pierce,  during  the  whole  of  his  ad- 
ministration, did  every  thing  he  could  to  conciliate 
the  South  ;  but  it  was  all  in  vain.  The  conflict  every 
year  grew  more  violent,  and  threats  of  the  dissolution 
of  the  Union  were  borne  to  the  North  on  every  South- 
ern breeze. 

Such  was  the  condition  of  affairs  when  President 
Pierce  approached  the  close  of  his  four-years'  term 
of  office.  The  North  had  become  thoroughly  alien- 
ated from  him.  The  anti-slavery  sentiment,  goaded 
by  great  outrages,  had  been  rapidly  increasing;  all 
the  intellectual  ability  and  social  worth  of  President 
Pierce  were  forgotten  in  deep  reprehension  of  his  ad- 
ministrative acts.  The  slaveholders  of  the  South,  also, 
unmindful  of  the  fidelity  with  which  he  had  advo- 
cated those  measures  of  Government  which  they  ap- 
proved, and  perhaps,  also,  feeling  that  he  had 
rendered  himself  so  unpopular  as  no  longer  to  be 
able  acceptably  to  serve  them,  ungratefully  dropped 
him,  and  nominated  James  Buchanan  to  succeed  him. 

On  the  4th  of  March,  1857,  President  Pierce  re- 
tired to  his  home  in  Concord.  Of  three  children,  two 
had  died,  and  his  only  surviving  child  had  been 
killed  before  his  eyes  by  a  railroad  accident ;  and  his 
wife,  one  of  the  most  estimable  and  accomplished  of 
ladies,  was  rapidly  sinking  in  consumption.  The 
hour  of  dreadful  gloom  soon  came,  and  he  was  left 
alone  in  the  world,  without  wife  or  child. 

When  the  terrible  Rebellion  burst  forth,  which  di- 
vided our  country  into  two  parties,  and  two  only,  Mr. 
Pierce  remained  steadfast  in  the  principles  which  he 
had  always  cherished,  and  gave  his  sympathies  to 
that  pro-slavery  party  with  which  he  had  ever  been 
allied.  He  declined  to  do  anything,  either  by  voice 
or  pen,  to  strengthen  the  hand  of  the  National  Gov- 
ernment. He  continued  to  reside  in  Concord  until 
the  time  of  his  death,  which  occurred  in  October, 
1869.  He  was  one  of  the  most  genial  and  social  of 
men,  an  honored  communicant  of  the  Episcopal 
Church,  and  one  of  the  kindest  of  neighbors.  Gen- 
erous to  a  fault,  he  contrilnited  liberally  for  the  al-. 
leviation  of  suffering  and  want,  and  many  of  his  towns- 
people were  often  gladened  by  his   material   bounty. 


James  Buchanan. 


FIFTEENTH  PRESIDENT 


1    .>■!    .'1    ..'I    .'I 


MiK 


^»^ 


<.■•.«.•..».•.,«.  •.  '.  •.  '.  •.  • 


•.  •  I."  <.•.'■  •. '  ■:• ;  i' ;  i'  ."i" 


.  '1   .  'i   .  'i.  T  .  'l  .■•\  .  ■! 


;  i' ; .'  .-i'  .'v  .-i' ;  •• :  i' ;  i'  .••j'.;  .< ;  ji,:'7j 


,1  >'\  ■A/T  ri'rT--)     I  ]  I  It';  I  I  v'\  HiVi^f ,     E 


't    ■   'i    ..'t'  .■'»'  .-I    .1    .     t    .     I    .   ' 


AMES  BUCHANAN",  the  fif- 
teenth President  of  the  United 
States,  was  born  in  a  small 
frontier  town,  at  the  foot  of  the 
eastern  ridge  of  the  Allegha- 
nies,  in  Franklin  Co.,  Penn.,on 
the  23d  of  April,  1791.  Tlie  place 
where  the  humble  cabin  of  his 
father  stiKxl  was  called  Stony 
Hatter.  It  was  a  wild  and  ro- 
^Jp  (^  mantle  spot  in  a  gorjjeof  the  moun- 
tains, with  towering  summits  rising 
grandly  all  around.  His  father 
was  a  native  of  the  north  of  Ireland ; 
a  ixx)r  man,  who  had  emigrated  in 
1783,  with  little  proiHjrty  save  his 
own  strong  arms.  Five  years  afterwards  he  married 
Elizabeth  Sjjear,  the  daughter  of  a  resjiectable  farmer, 
and,  with  his  young  bride,  plunj^ed  into  the  wilder- 
ness, staked  his  claim,  reared  his  log-hut,  opened  a 
clearing  with  his  axe,  and  settled  down  there  to  ix:r- 
fomi  his  obscure  part  in  the  drama  of  life.  In  this  se- 
eluded  home,  where  James  was  born,  he  remained 
for  eight  years,  enjoying  but  few  social  or  intellectual 
advantag<s.  When  James  was  eight  yeaisof  age,  his 
father  removed  to  the  village  of  Mercersburg,  where 
his  son  was  placed  at  school,  and  commenced  a 
course  of  study  in  English,  Latin  and  Greek.  His 
progress  was  rapid,  and  at  the  age  of  fourteen,  he 
entered  Dickinson  College,  at  Carlisle.  Here  he  de- 
veloped remarkable  toient,  and  took  his  stand  among 
the  first  scholars  in  the  institution.  His  application 
U;  study  was  intense,  and  yet  his  naii'e  jx)wers    cn- 


»-< )))}> 


T/iV, 


^ 


abled  him  to  master  the  most  abstruse  subjects  wi  *■ 
facility. 

In  the  year  1809,  he  graduated  with  the  highest 
honors  of  his  clas-..  He  was  then  eighteen  years  ol 
age;  tall  and  graceful,  vigorous  in  health,  fond  of 
athletic  sjjort,  an  unerring  shot,  and  enlivened  with 
an  e.\uberant  flow  of  animal  spirits.  He  immediately 
commenced  the  study  of  law  in  the  city  of  Lancaster, 
and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1812,  when  he  was 
but  twenty-one  years  of  age.  Very  rapidly  he  rose 
in  his  profession,  and  at  once  took  undisputed  stand 
with  the  ablest  lawyers  of  the  State.  When  but 
twcnty-si.\  years  of  age,  unaided  by  counsel,  he  suc- 
cessfully defended  before  the  State  Senate  ore  of  the 
judges  of  the  State,  who  was  tried  upon  articles  01 
impeachment.  At  the  age  of  thirty  it  was  generally 
admitted  that  he  stood  at  the  head  of  the  bar;  and 
there  was  no  lawyer  in  the  State  who  had  a  more  lu- 
crative practice. 

In  1820,  he  reluctantly  consented  to  run  as  1 
candidate  for  Congress.  He  was  elected,  and  foi 
ten  years  he  remained  a  member  of  the  Ix)wer  House 
During  the  vacations  of  Congress,  he  occasionally 
tried  some  important  case.  In  1831,  he  retired 
altogether  from  the  toils  of  his  profession,  having  ac- 
quired an  ample  fortune. 

Gen.  Jackson,  ui>on  his  elevation  to  the  Presidency, 
appointed  Mr.  Buchanan  minister  to  Russia.  The 
duties  of  his  mission  he  iK-rformed  with  ability,  which 
gave  satisfaction  to  all  parties.  U'lKin  his  return,  ii, 
1833,  he  was  elected  to  a  scat  in  the  United  Slates 
Senate.  He  there  met,  as  his  associates,  WeLsicr. 
Clay,  Wright  and  Calhoun.  He  advocated  the  meas- 
ures proposed  by  President  Jackson,  rfni.Jring  repti- 


76 


JAMES  BUCHANAN. 


sals  against  France,  to  enforce  the  payment  of  our 
claims  against  that  country;  and  defended  the 
course  of  the  President  in  his  unprecedented  and 
wholesale  removal  from  ofHce  of  those  who  were 
not  the  supporters  of  his  administration.  Upon 
this  question  he  was  brought  into  direct  collision 
with  Henry  Clay.  He  also,  with  voice  and  vote,  ad- 
vocated expunging  from  the  journal  of  the  Senate 
the  vote  of  censure  against  Gen.  Jackson  for  remov- 
ing the  deposits.  Earnestly  he  opposed  the  aboli- 
tion of  slavery  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  and 
m-ged  the  prohibition  of  the  circulation  of  anti- 
slavery  documents  by  the  United  States  mails. 

As  to  petitions  on  the  subject  of  slavery,  he  ad- 
vocated that  they  should  be  respectfully  received; 
and  that  the  reply  should  be  returned,  that  Con- 
gress had  no  power  to  legislate  upon  the  subject. 
"Congress,"  said  he,  "might  as  well  undertake  to 
interfere  with  slavery  under  a  foreign  government 
as  in  anj'  of  the  States  where  it  now  exists." 

Upon  Mr.  Polk's  accession  to  the  Presidency,  Mr. 
Buchanan  became  Secretary  of  State,  and  as  such, 
took  his  share  of  the  responsibility  in  the  conduct 
of  the  Mexican  "War.  Mr.  Polk  assumed  that  cross- 
ing the  Nueces  by  the  American  troops  into  the 
disputed  territory  was  not  wrong,  but  for  the  Mex- 
icans to  cross  the  Rio  Grande  into  that  territory 
was  a  declaration  of  war.  Is  o  candid  man  can  read 
with  pleasure  the  account  of  the  course  our  Gov- 
ernment pursued  in  that  movement. 

Mr.  Buchanan  identified  himself  thoroughly  with 
the  party  devoted  to  the  perpetuation  and  extension 
of  slavery,  and  brought  all  the  energies  of  his  mind 
to  bear  against  the  Wilmot  Proviso.  He  gave  his 
cordial  approval  to  the  compromise  measures  of 
1850,  which  included  the  fugitive  slave  law.  Mr. 
Pierce,  upon  his  election  to  the  Presidency,  hon- 
ored Mr.  Buchanan  with  the  mission  to  England. 
In  the  year  1856,  a  national  Democratic  conven- 
tion nominated  Mr.  Buchanan  for  the  Presidency. 
The  political  conflict  was  one  of  the  most  severe 
in  which  our  country  has  ever  engaged.  All  the 
friends  of  slavery  were  on  one  side;  all  the  advo- 
cates of  its  restriction  and  final  abolition  on  the 
other.  Mr.  Fremont,  the  candidate  of  the  enemies 
of  slaver}^,  received  lU  electoral  votes.  ^Mr.  Bu- 
chanan received  1 74,  and  was  elected.  The  popular 
vote  stood  1,340,618  for  Fremont,  1,224,750  for 
Buchanan.  On  March  4,  1857,  Mr.  Buchanan  was 
inaugurated. 

Mr.  Buchanan  was  far  advanced  in  life.  Only 
four  years  were  wanting  to  fill  up  his  three-score 
jears'and  ten.  His  own  friends,  those  with  whom 
"he  had  been  allied  in  political  principles  and  action 
for  years,  were  seeking  the  destruction  of  the  Gov- 
ernment, that  they  might  rear  upon  the  ruins  of  our 
free  institutions  a  nation  whose  corner-stone  should 


be  human  slavery.  In  this  emergency,  Mr.  Bu- 
chanan was  hopelessly  bewildered.  He  couid  not, 
with  his  long-avowed  principles,  consistently  op- 
pose the  State-rights  party  in  their  assumptions.  As 
President  of  the  United  States,  bound  by  his  oath 
faithfully  to  administer  the  laws,  he  could  not, 
without  "perjury  of  the  grossest  kind,  unite  with 
those  endeavoring  to  overthrow  the  Republic.  He 
therefore  did  nothing. 

The  opponents  of  Mr.  Buchanan's  administration 
nominated  Abraham  Lincoln  as  their  standard- 
bearer  in  the  next  Presidential  canvass.  The  pro- 
slavery  party  declared  that  if  he  were  elected  and 
the  control  of  the  Government  were  thus  taken  from 
their  hands  they  would  secede  from  the  Union,  tak- 
ing with  them  "as  they  retired  the  National  Capi- 
tol at  Washington  and  the  lion's  shave  of  the  ter- 
ritory of  the  United  States. 

As  the  storm  increased  in  violence,  the  slave- 
holders, claiming  the  right  to  secede,  and  Mr.  Bu- 
chanan avowing  that  Congress  had  no  power  to 
prevent  it,  one  of  the  most  pitiable  exhibitions  of 
governmental  imbecility  was  exhibited  the  world 
has  ever  seen.  He  declared  that  Congress  had  no 
power  to  enforce  its  laws  in  any  State  which  had 
withdrawn,  or  which  was  attempting  to  withdraw, 
from  the  Union.  This  was  not  the  doctrine  of  An- 
drew Jackson,  when,  with  his  hand  upon  his  sword- 
hilt,  he  exclaimed.  "The  Union  must  and  shall  be 
preserved!" 

South  Carolina  seceded  in  December,  1860,  nearly 
three  months  before  the  inauguration  of  President 
Lincoln.  ]Mr.  Buchanan  looked  on  in  listless  de- 
spair. The  rebel  flag  was  raised  in  Charleston;  Ft. 
Sumter  was  besieged;  our  forts,  navy-yards  and 
arsenals  were  seized;  our  depots  of  military  stores 
were  plundered;  and  our  custom-houses  and  post- 
otflces  were  appropriated  by  the  rebels. 

The  energy  of  the  rebels  and  the  imbecility  of 
our  Executive  were  alike  marvelous.  The  nation 
looked  on  in  agony,  waiting  for  the  slow  weeks  to 
tclide  an-ay  and  close  the  administration,  so  ter- 
rible in  its  weakness.  At  length  the  long-looked- 
for  hour  of  deliverance  came,  when  Abraham  Lin- 
coln was  to  receive  the  scepter. 

The  administration  of  President  Buchanan  was 
certainly  the  most  calamitous  our  country  has  ex- 
perienced. His  best  friends  cannot  recall  it  with 
ple.isure.  And  still  more  deplorable  it  is  for  his 
fame,  that  in  that  dreadful  conflict  which  rolled  its 
billows  of  flame  and  blood  over  our  whole  land,  no 
word  came  from  his  lips  to  indicate  his  wish  that 
our  country's  banner  should  triumph  over  the  flag 
of  the  Rebellion.  He  died  at  his  Wheatland  re- 
treat, June  1,  1868. 


Abraham  Lincoln. 


SIXTEENTH  PRES/DEt^T. 


7» 


^i^. 


!l  V  ABRAHAM  >  'ii>^^  :!:1^  -TUNCOLN,  >  f^ 


/:\^5<J- 


i^j:^i 


.r..,.-„.^^...  i^j^^jjj^^j  LINCOLN,  the 
^  sixtcciuli  President  of  the 
■  -.#United  States,  was  Iwni  in 
ul  Hardin  Co.,  Ky.,  Feb.  12, 
- .  J  I S09.  About  the  year  1 7  So,  a 
• '  man  by  the  name  of  Abraham 
Lincoh>  left  Virginia  with  his 
inily  and  moved  into  the  then 
Ids  of  Kentucky.  Only  two  years 
Iter  this  emigration,  still  a  young 
nan,  while  workini;  one  day  in  a 
'  licld,  was  stealtiiily  appro:;ched  by 
an  Indian  andshot  dead.  His  widow 
was  left  in  extreme  (wverty  with  five 
little  children,  three  boys  and  two 
girls.  Thomas,  the  youngest  of  the 
Ixjys,  was  four  years  of  age  at  his 
father's  death.  This  Thomas  was 
the  father  of  .Abraham  Lincoln,  the 
President  of  the  United  States 
whose  name  must  henceforth  fo'ever  be  enrolled 
with  the  most  prominent  in  the  annals  of  our  world. 
Of  course  no  record  has  been  kept  of  the  life 
of  one  so  lowly  as  Thomas  Lincoln.  He  was  among 
the  poorest  of  the  jKXJr.  His  home  was  p.  wretched 
log^abin;  his  food  the  coarsest  and  the  meanest. 
Education  he  had  none;  he  could  never  either  re.id 
or  write.  .\s  soon  as  he  was  able  to  do  anything  for 
himself,  he  was  comi)ellcd  to  leave  the  cabin  of  his 
starring  mother,  and  push  out  into  the  world, a  friend- 
.ess,  wandering  Ixjy,  seeking  work.  He  hired  him- 
self out,  and  thus  si)eni  the  whole  of  his  youth  as  a 
7jl)orer  in  the  fields  of  others. 

When  twenty-eight  years  of  age  he  buill  a  log- 
eabin  of  his  own,  and  married  Nancy  Hanks,  the 
daughter  of  another  family  of  fx»r  Kentucky  emi- 
grants, who  had  also  rome  from  Virginia.  Their 
second  child  was  .Xbrah.im  Linroln,  the  subject  of 
this  sketch.  The  mother  of  Abraham  was  a  noble 
woman,  gentle,  loving,  jiensive,  created  to  adorn 
.T  fialare.  doomed  to  toil  and  pine,  and  die  in  a  hovel. 
*•  All  'hat  I  am,  or  hope  to  l^,"  exclaims  the  grate- 
ful son  "  I  owe  to  my  angel-mother.  " 

When  he  was  eight  years  of  age,  his  father  sold  his 


cabin  and  small  farm,  and  moved  to  Indiaria.  VVhcr* 
two  years  later  his  mother  died. 

Abraham  soon  became  the  scribe  of  the  uneducated 
community  around  him.  He  could  not  have  had  a 
better  school  than  this  to  teach  him  to  put  thoughts 
into  words.  He  also  became  an  eager  reader.  The 
books  he  could  obtain  were  few  ;  but  these  he  ead 
and  re-read  until  they  were  almost  conimittt^  ic 
memory. 

As  the  years  rolled  on,  the  lot  of  iliis  lowly  faiuil) 
was  the  usual  lot  of  humanity.  Th>re  were  joys  and 
griefs,  weddings  and  funerals.  Abraham's  sistf» 
Sarah,  to  whom  he  was  tenderly  attached,  was  mai 
ried  when  a  child  of  but  fourteen  years  of  age,  and 
soon  died.  The  family  was  gradually  scattered.  M' 
Thomas  Lincoln  sold  out  his  scjualter's  claim  'n  1830 
and  emigrated  to  Macon  Co.,  III. 

Abraham  Lincoln  was  then  twenty-one  years  of  age. 
With  vigorous  hands  he  aided  his  father  in  I'-iring 
another  log-cabin,  .\braham  worked  diligently  at  this 
until  he  saw  the  family  comfortably  settled,  and  theii 
small  lot  of  enclosed  prairie  pLnnted  with  com,  when 
he  announced  to  his  father  his  intention  to  leave 
home,  and  to  go  out  into  the  world  and  seek  his  for- 
tune. Little  did  he  or  his  friends  imagine  how  bril- 
liant that  fortune  was  to  be.  He  saw  the  value  ol 
education  and  was  intensely  earnest  to  improve  his 
mind  to  the  utmost  of  his  power.  He  saw  the  ruin 
which  ardent  spirits  were  causing,  and  be(  amc 
strictly  tem[)eraie;  ref  ising  to  allow  a  drop  of  intoxi- 
cating liiiuor  to  pass  his  lips.  And  he  had  read  in 
God's  word,  "Thou  shalt  not  take  the  name  of  the 
Lord  thy  God  in  ■'  .1..;"  and  a  profane  expression  ht 
was  never  heard  to  utter.  Religion  he  revered.  Hi» 
morals  were  iiure,  and  he  was  uncontaminated  by  a 
single  vice. 

Young  .\braham  woiked  for  a  time  as  a  hired  lalwrcu 
among  the  fanners.  Then  he  went  to  Springfield 
where  he  was  employed  in  building  a  larije  flat-|)oat 
In  this  he  took  a  herd  of  swine,  flo.nted  them  dow\ 
the  Sangamon  to  the  Illinois,  ,nnd  ihenre  by  the  Mi* 
sissippi  to  New  Orleans.  \\'hat<-ver  Abraham  Lir 
coin  inidertook,  he  i>erfomied  so  faithfully  as  to  givi 
great  satisfacticn  to  his  employers.      In  this  adveD 


So 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN. 


ture  his  employers  were  so  well  pleased,  that   upon 
his  return  they  placed  a  store  and  mill  under  his  care. 

In  1832,  at  the  outbreak  of  the  Black  Hawk  war,  he 
enlisted  and  was  chosen  captain  of  a  company.  He 
returned  to  Sangamon  Couuty,  and  although  only  23 
years  of  age,  was  a  candidate  for  the  Legislature,  but 
was  defeated.  He  soon  after  received  from  Andrew 
Jackson  the  appointmentof  Postmaster  of  New  Salem, 
His  only  post-office  was  his  hat.  All  the  letters  he 
received  he  carried  there  ready  to  deliver  to  those 
he  chanced  to  meet.  He  studied  surveying,  and  soon 
made  this  his  business.  In  1834  he  again  became  a 
candidate  for  the  Legislature,  and  was  elected.  Mr. 
Stuart,  of  Springfield,  advised  him  to  study  law.  He 
walked  from  New  Salem  to  Springfield,  borrowed  of 
Mr.  Stuart  a  load  of  books,  carried  them  back  and 
began  his  legal  studies.  When  the  Legislature  as- 
sembled he  trudged  on  foot  with  his  pack  on  his  back 
one  hundred  miles  to  Vandalia,  then  the  capital.  In 
1836  he  was  re-elected  to  the  Legislature.  Here  it 
was  he  first  met  Stephen  A.  Douglas.  In  1839  he  re- 
moved to  Springfield  and  began  the  practice  of  law. 
His  success  with  the  jury  was  so  great  that  he  was 
soon  engaged  in  almost  every  noted  case  in  the  circuit. 

In  1854  the  great  discussion  began  between  Mr. 
Lincoln  and  Mr.  Douglas,  on  the  slavery  question. 
In  the  organization  of  the  Republican  party  in  Illinois, 
in  1856,  he  took  an  active  part,  and  at  once  became 
one  of  the  leaders  in  that  party.  Mr._  Lincoln's 
speeches  in  opposition  to  Senator  Douglas  in  the  con- 
test in  1858  for  a  seat  in  the  Senate,  form  a  most 
notable  part  of  his  history.  The  issue  was  on  the 
slavery  question,  and  he  took  the  broad  ground  of 
;he  Declaration  of  Independence,  that  all  men  are 
created  equal.  Mr.  Lincoln  was  defeated  in  this  con- 
test, but  won  a  far  higher  prize. 

The  great  Republican  Convention  met  at  Chicago 
on  the  1 6th  of  June,  i860.  The  delegates  and 
strangers  who  crowded  the  city  amounted  to  twenty- 
five  thousand.  An  immense  building  called  "  The 
Wigwam,"  was  reared  to  accommodate  the  Conven- 
tion. There  were  eleven  candidates  for  whom  votes 
were  thrown.  William  H.  Seward,  a  man  wlrose  fame 
as  a  statesman  had  long  filled  the  land,  was  the  most 
prominent.  It  was  generally  supposed  he  would  be 
the  nominee.  Abraham  Lincoln,  however,  received 
the  nomination  on  the  third  ballot.  Little  did  he  then 
dream  of  the  weary  years  of  toil  and  care,  and  the 
bloody  death,  to  which  that  nomination  doomed  him : 
And  as  little  did  he  dream  that  he  was  to  render  services 
to  his  country,  which  would  fix  upon  him  the  eyes  of 
the  whole  civilized  world,  and  which  would  give  him 
a  place  in  the  affections  of  his  countrymen,  second 
only,  if  second,  to  that  of  Washington. 

Election  day  came  and  Mr.  Lincoln  received  180 
electoral  votes  out  of  203  cast,  and  was,  therefore, 
constitutionally  elected  President  of  the  United  States. 
The  tirade  of  abuse  that  was  poured  upon  this    good 


and  merciful  man,  especially  by  the  slaveholders,  was 
greater  than  upon  any  other  man  ever  elected  to  this 
high  position.  In  February,  1861,  Mr.  Lincoln  started 
for  Washington,  stopping  in  all  the  large  cities  on  his 
way  making  speeches.  The  whole  journey  was  frought 
with  much  danger.  Many  of  the  Southern  States  had 
already  seceded,  and  several  attempts  at  assassination 
were  afcerwards  brought  to  light.  A  gang  in  Balti- 
more had  arranged,  upon  his  arrival  to"  get  up  a  row," 
and  in  the  confusion  to  make  sure  of  his  death  with 
revolvers  and  hand-grenades.  A  detective  unravelled 
the  plot.  A  secret  and  special  train  was  p-ovided  to 
take  him  from  HarrisL-urg,  through  Baltimce,  at  aii 
unexpected  hour  of  the  night.  The  train  sf^rted  at 
half-past  ten  ;  and  to  prevent  any  possible  communi- 
cation on  the  part  ot  tire  Secessionists  with  their  Con- 
federate gang  in  Baltimore,  as  soon  as  the  train  haa 
started  the  telegraph-wires  were  cut.  Mr.  Lincoln 
reached  \Vashington  in  safety  and  was  inaugurated, 
although  great  anxiety  was  felt  by  all  loyal  people. 

In  the  selection  of  his  cabinet  Mr.  Lincoln  gave 
to  Mr.  Seward  the  Department  of  State,  and  to  other 
prominent  opponents  before  the  convention  he  gave 
important  positions. 

During  no  other  administration  have  the  duties 
devolving  upon  the  President  been  so  manifold,  and 
the  responsibilities  so  great,  as  those  which  fell  to 
the  lot  of  President  Lincoln.  Knowing  this,  and 
feeling  liis  own  weakness  and  inability  to  meet,  and  in 
his  own  strength  to  cope  with,  the  difficullies,  he 
learned  early  to  seek  Divine  wisdom  and  guidance  in 
determining  his  plans,  and  Divine  comfort  in  all  his 
trials,  bo*h  personal  and  national  Contrary  to  his 
own  estimate  of  himself,  Mr.  Lincoln  was  one  of  the 
most  courageous  of  men.  He  went  directly  into  the 
rebel  capital  just  as  the  retreating  foe  was  leaving, 
with  no  guard  but  a  few  sailors.  From  the  time  he 
had  left  Springfield,  in  1861,  however,  plans  had  been 
made  for  his  assassination, and  he  at  last  fell  a  victim 
to  one  of  them.  April  14,  1865,  he,  with  Gen.  Grant, 
was  urgently  invited  to  attend  Fords'  Theater.  It 
was  announced  that  they  would  be  present.  Gen. 
Grant,  however,  left  the  city.  President  Lincoln,  feel- 
ing, wiin  his  characteristic  kindliness  of  heart,  that 
it  would  be  a  disappointment  if  he  should  fail  them, 
very  reluctantly  consented  to  go.  While  listening  to 
the  play  an  actor  by  the  name  of  John  Wilkes  Booth 
entered  the  box  where  the  President  and  family  were 
seated,  and  fired  a  bullet  into  his  brains.  He  died  the 
next  morning  at  seven  o'clock. 

Never  before,  in  the  history  of  the  world  was  a  nation 
plunged  into  such  deep  grief  by  the  death  of  its  ruler. 
Strong  men  met  in  the  streets  and  wept  in  speechless 
anguish.  It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  a  nation  was 
in  tears.  His  was  a  life  which  will  fitly  become  a 
model.  His  name  as  the  savior  of  his  country  will 
live  with  that  of  Washington's,  ils  father;  his  country- 
men being  unable   to  decide    which  is    tKe  greater. 


Andrew  Johnson. 


SEVENTEENTH  PRESJVEAT. 


J^iMf^^'7^S-'..t 


VXfyjJJJJ^BBBt 


,'\  l^(  U  i  i  H'/  VV     >i  I )  !  I  I'^r'OTmf. 


'1  • 


VDREW  JOHNSON,  seven- 
centh  President  of  the  United 
■  Slates.  The  early  hiV  of 
Andrew  Johnson  contains  but 
the  record  of  jxiverty,  destitu- 
tion and  friendlessness.  He 
was  born  December  29,  1808, 
in  Raleigh,  N.  C.  His  parents, 
belonging  to  the  class  oi"  the 
"poor  whites  "of  the  South, were 
in  such  circumstances,  that  they 
could  not  c-;nf:r  _.'er,  ine  slight- 
est advantages  of  education  uj)on 
their  child.  When  Andrew  was  five 
years  of  age,  his  father  accidentally 
lost  iiis  life  while  hetorically  endeavoring  to  save  a 
friend  from  drowning,  ''niil  ten  yevirs  i>f  age,  .Andrew 
was  a  ragged  boy  about  the  streets,  sup|X)rted  by  the 
labor  of  his  mother,  who  obtained  her  living  with 
her  own  hands. 

He  then,  having  never  attended  a  school  one  day, 
and  being  unable  either  to  read  or  write,  was  a])- 
prenticed  to  a  tailor  in  his  native  town.  ,\  gentleman 
was  in  the  habit  of  going  to  the  tailor's  shop  occasion- 
ally, and  reading  to  the  Iwys  at  work  there.  He  often 
read  from  the  speeches  of  distinguished  Hritish  states- 
men. Andrew,  who  was  endowed  with  a  mind  of  more 
than  ordinary  native  ability,  became  much  interested 
in  these  s|)eeches;  his  ambition  was  roused,  and  he 
was  inspired  with  a  strong  desire  to  learn  to  read. 

He  acojrdingly  applied  hin)self  to  the  alphal>el,  and 
with  the  assistance  of  some  of  his  fellow-wotkmen, 
learned  his  letters.  He  then  called  u|ton  the  gentle- 
man to  Ijorrow  the  book  of   s|>ccchcs.       The  owner. 


pleased  with  his  zeal,  not  only  gave  him  the  boOK 
but  assisted  him  in  learning  to  combine  the  letters 
into  words.  Under  such  difficulties  he  pressed  oi. 
ward  lal)oriously,  spending  usually  ten  or  twelve  houi^ 
at  work  in  the  shop,  and  then  robbing  himself  of  rest 
and  recreatio.""  to  devote  such  time  as  he  could  to 
reading. 

He  went  to  Tennessee  in  1826,  and  located  a* 
Oreenville,  where  he  married  a  young  lady  who  pv.»s 
sessed  some  education.  Under  her  instructions  he 
learned  to  write  and  cipher.  He  became  proniine;': 
in  the  village  debating  society,  and  a  favorite  with 
the  students  of  Greenville  College.  In  1828,  he  or 
ganized  a  working  man's  parly,  which  elected  him 
aldenuan,  and  in  1830  elected  him  mayor,  which 
position  he  held  three  years. 

He  now  began  to  take  a  lively  interest  in  political 
affairs ;  identifying  himself  with  the  working-classes, 
to  which  lie  belonged.  In  1835,  he  was  elected  a 
member  of  the  House  of  Representatives  of  Tennes- 
see. He  was  then  just  twenty-seven  years  of  age. 
He  became  a  verj'  active  memljer  of  the  legislature 
gave  his  adhesion  to  the  Democratic  party,  and  in 
X840  " stumi)ed  the  State,"  advocating  Martin  Van 
Huren's  claims  to  the  Presidency,  in  opposition  to  thoSv 
of  Oen.  Harrison.  In  this  campaign  he  acquired  much 
readiness  as  a  speaker,  and  extended  and  increased 
his  reputation. 

In  1841,  he  was  elected  Stale  Senator;  in  1843,  ht 
w,is  elected  a  member  of  Congress,  and  by  successive 
elections,  held  that  imjwrtant  [xjst  for  ten  years  In 
1853,  he  was  elected  Governor  of  Tennessee,  and' 
was  re-elected  in  1855.  In  all  these  resiwnsible  |iosi 
tion*,  he  discharged  his  duties  withdi-^iinguishcd  abi. 


84 


ANDRE  W  JOHNSON. 


ity,  and  proved  himself  the  warm  friend  of  the  work- 
ing classes.  In  1857,  Mr.  Johnson  was  elected 
United  States  Senator. 

Years  before,  in  1S45,  he  had  warmly  advocated 
the  annexation  of  Texas,  stating  however,  as  his 
reason,  that  he  thought  this  annexation  would  prob- 
ably prove  "  to  be  the  gateway  out  of  which  the  sable 
50ns  of  Africa  are  to  pass  from  bondage  to  freedom, 
.ind  become  merged  in  a  population  congenial  to 
themselves."  In  1850,  he  also  supported  the  com- 
promise measures,  the  two  essential  features  of  which 
vvere,  that  the  white  people  of  the  Territories  should 
oe  permitted  to  decide  for  themselves  whether  they 
would  enslave  the  colored  people  or  not,  and  that 
the  free  States  of  the  North  should  return  to  the 
South  persons  who  attempted  to  escape  from  slavery. 

Mr.  Johnson  was  never  ashamed  of  his  lowly  origin: 
on  the  contrary,  he  often  took  pride  in  avowing  that 
he  owed  his  distinction  to  his  own  exertions.  "Sir,'" 
said  he  oil  the  floor  of  the  Senate,  "  I  do  not  forget 
that  I  am  a  mechanic  ;  neither  do  I  forget  that  Adam 
was  a  tailor  and  sewed  fig-leaves,  and  that  our  Sav- 
ior was  the  son  of  a  carpenter." 

In  the  Charleston-Baltimore  convention  of  iSbo,  ne 
.ivas  the  choice  of  the  Tennessee  Democrats  for  the 
Presidency.  In  1861,  when  the  purpose  of  the  South- 
ern Democracy  became  apparent,  he  took  a  decided 
stand  in  favor  of  the  Union,  and  held  that  "  slavery 
must  be  held  subordinate  to  the  Union  at  whatever 
cost."  He  returned  to  Tennessee,  and  repeatedly 
imperiled  his  own  life  to  protect  the  Unionists  of 
Tennesee.  Tennessee  having  seceded  from  the 
Union,  President  Lincoln,  on  March  4th,  1862,  ap- 
pointed him  Military  Governor  of  the  State,  and  he 
established  the  most  stringent  military  rule.  His 
numerous  proclamations  attracted  wide  attention.    In 

1864,  he  was  elected  Vice-President   of  the    United 
States,  and  upon  the  death  of  Mr.  Lincoln,  April   15, 

1865,  became  President.  In  a  speech  two  days  later 
he  said,  "  The  American  people  must  be  taught,  if 
?hey  do  not  already  feel,  that  treason  is  a  crime  and 
must  be  vanished ;  that  the  Government  will  not 
always  bear  with  its  enemies ;  that  it  is  strong  not 
only  to  protect,  but  to  punish.  *  *  The  people 
must  understand  that  it  (treason)  is  the  blackest  -of 
crimes,  and  will  surely  be  punished."  Yet  his  whole 
administration,  the  history  of  which  is  so  well  known, 
was  in  utter  ioijonsistency  with,  and  the  most  violent 


opposition  to,  the  principles  laid  down  in  that  speech. 
In  his  loose  policy  of  reconstruction  and   general 
amnesty,  he  was  opposed  by  Co;igress ;  and  he  char- 
acterized Congress  as  a  new  rebellion,  and  Jawlesslj 
defied  it,  in  everything  possible,  to  the  utmost.     In 
the  beginniiig  of  1868,  on  account  of  "high   crimes 
and  misdemeanors,"  the  principal  of  which  was  the 
removal  of  Secretary  Stanton,  in  violation  of  the  Ten- 
ure of  Office  Act,  articles  of  impeachment  were  pre- 
ferred against  him,  and  the   trial   began    March   23. 
It  was  very  tedious,  continuing  for  nearly  three 
months.     A  test  article  of  the  impeachment  was  at 
length  submitted  to  the  court  for  its  action.      It  was 
certain  that  as  the  court  voted  upon  -that   article   so 
would  it  vote  upon  all.  Thirty-four  voices  pronounced 
the  President  guilty.  As  a  two-thirds  vote  was  neces- 
sary to  his  condemnation,   he  was    pronounced    ac- 
quitted, notwithstanding  the  great    majority  against 
him.     The  change  of  one  vote    from   the   not  guilty 
side  would  have  sustained  the  impeachment. 

The  President,  for  the  remainder  of  his  term,  was 
but  little  regarded.  He  continued,  though  impotently, 
his  conflict  with  Congress.  His  own  party  did  not 
think  it  expedient  to  renominate  him  for  the  Presi- 
dency. The  Nation  rallied,  with  enthusiasm  unpar- 
alleled since  the  days  of  Washington,  around  the  name 
of  Gen.  Grant.  Andrew  Johnson  was  forgotten. 
The  bullet  of  the  assassin  introduced  him  to  the 
President's  chair.  Notwithstanding  this,  never  was 
there  presented  to  a  man  a  better  opportunity  to  im- 
mortalize his  name,  and  to  win  the  gratitude  of  a 
nation.  He  failed  utterly.  He  retired  to  his  home 
in  Greenville,  Tenn.,  taking  no  very  active  part  in 
politics  until  r 87 5.  On  Jan.  26,  after  an  e.xciting 
struggle,  he  was  chosen  by  the  Legislature  of  Ten- 
nessee, United  States  Senator  in  the  forty-fourth  Con- 
gress, and  took  his  seat  in  that  body,  at  the  special 
session  convened  by  President  Grant,  on  the  sth  of 
March.  On  the  27th  of  July,  1875,  the  ex-President 
made  a  visit  to  his  daughter's  home,  near  Carter 
Station,  Tenn.  When  he  started  on  his  journey,  he  was 
apparently  in  his  usual  vigorous  healtli,  but  on  reach- 
ing the  residence  of  his  child  the  following  day,  was 
stricken  with  paralysis,  rendering  him  unconscious. 
He  rallied  occasionally,  but  finally  passed  away  at 
2  A.M.,  July  31,  aged  sixty-seven  years.  His  fun- 
eral was  attended  at  Geenville,  on  the  3d  of  August, 
with  every  demonstration  of  respect. 


U.  S.  Grant. 


E/G/fTEFATTIf  PHESIDF.XT. 


u 


I 


i 

LYSSES     S.    GRANT,    the 

eij;htcentl>  President  of  the 
"Lnitcii  States,  was  bom  on 
the  29ih  of  April,  1822,  of 
Christian  parents,  in  a  humble 
omc,  at  Point  Pleasant,  on  the 
anks  of  the  Ohio.  Shonly  after 
iiis  father  moved  to  George- 
town, Brown  G).,  O.  in  this  re- 
mote frontier  hamlet,  Ulysses 
received  a  common-school  edu- 
"'  cation.  At  the  age  of  seven- 
teen, in  the  year  1839,  he  entered 
the  Milicar)'  A'juideray  at  West 
Point.  Here  he  was  regarded  as  a 
jolid,  sensible  young  man  of  fair  abilities,  and  of 
sturdy,  honest  character.  He  took  resiiectable  rank 
as  a  scholar.  In  June,  1843,  he  graduated, about  the 
middle  in  his  class,  and  was  sent  as  lieutenant  of  in- 
fantry' to  one  of  the  distant  military  posts  in  the  Mis- 
souri Territory.  Two  years  he  past  in  these  dreary 
solitudes,  watching  the  vagabond  and  exasperating 
.'ndians. 

The  war  with  Mexico  came.  Lieut.  Grant  was 
sent  with  his  regiment  to  Corpus  Christi.  His  first 
battle  was  at  Palo  Alto.  There  was  no  chance  here 
for  the  exhibition  of  either  skill  or  heroism,  nor  at 
Kcsaca  dc  la  Palma,  his  second  battle.  .\t  the  battle 
of  Monterey,  his  third  engagement,  it  is  said  that 
.■je  |>erformed  a  signal  service  of  daring  and  skillful 
horsemanship.  His  brigade  had  exhausted  its  am- 
munition. .\  messenger  must  be  sent  for  more,  along 
a  route  exposed  to  the  bullets  of  the  foe.  Lieut. 
Grant,  adopting  an  cxi>edicnt  learned  of  the  Ii.dians, 
grasped  the  mane  if  his  horse,  and  hanging  upon  one 
side  of  the  anim.iL  ran  the   gauntlet  in  entia-  safety. 


From  Monterey  he  was  sent, with  the  fourth  infanfy, 
to  aid  Gen.  Scott,  at  the  siege  of  Vera  Cruz.  In 
prejiaration  for  the  march  to  the  city  of  Mexico,  he 
was  a;)|»inted  quartermaster  of  his  regiment.  .\t  the 
battle  of  Molino  del  Rej',  he  was  promoted  to  a 
first  lieutenancy,  and  was  brevetted  captain  at  Cha- 
pultei>ec. 

.•\t  tlie  close  of  the  Mexican  War,  Capt.  Grant  re- 
turned with  his  regiment  to  New  York,  and  was  again 
sent  to  one  of  the  military  posts  on  the  frontier.  The 
discover)' of  gold  in  California  causing  an  immense 
tide  of  emigration  to  flow  to  the  Pacific  shores,  Capt. 
Grant  was  sent  with  a  battalion  to  Fort  Dallas,  in 
Oregon,  for  the  protection  of  the  interests  of  the  im- 
migrants. Life  was  wearisome  in  those  wilds.  Capt. 
Grant  resigned  his  commission  and  returned  to  the 
States;  and  having  married,  entered  upon  the  cultiva- 
tion of  a  small  farm  near  St.  Ix>uis,  Mo.  He  had  but 
little  skill  as  a  farmer.  Finding  his  toil  not  re- 
munerative, he  turned  to  mercantile  life,  entering  into 
the  leather  business,  with  a  younger  brother,  at  Ga- 
len.a.  111.  This  was  in  the  year  i860.  .As  the  tidings 
of  the  rebels  firing  on  Fort  Sumpter  reached  the  ears 
of  Capt.  Grant  in  his  counting-room,  he  said, — 
"Uncle  S.am  has  educated  me  for  the  army,  though 
I  have  served  him  through  one  war,  I  do  not  fe«l  that 
I  have  yet  repaid  the  debt.  I  am  still  ready  to  discharge 
my  obligations.  I  shall  therefore  buckle  on  my  tword 
and  see  Uncle  Sam  through  this  war  too." 

He  Went  into  the  streets,  raised  a  c  empany  of  vol- 
unteers, and  led  them  as  their  captain  to  Springfield, 
the  capital  of  the  State,  where  their  services  were 
offered  to  Gov.  Yates.  The  Governor,  impressed  l>y 
the  zeal  and  straightforward  executive  ability  of  Capt. 
Grant,  gave  him  a  desk  in  his  ofllro,  to  assist  in  the, 
volunteer  organization  that  was  Ixring  forniiMl  in  the 
State  in  behalf  of  the  Government.     On  the  ic-''  of 


88 


UL  VSSES  S.  GRA  NT. 


June,  1861,  Capt.  Grant  received  a  commission  as 
Colonel  of  the  Twenty-first  Regiment  of  Illinois  Vol- 
unteers. His  merits  as  a  West  Point  graduate,  who 
had  served  for  15  years  in  the  regular  army,  were  such 
that  he  was  soon  promoted  to  the  rank  of  Brigadier- 
General  and  was  placed  in  command  at  Cairo.  The 
rebels  raised  their  banner  at  Paducah,  near  the  mouth 
of  the  Tennessee  River.  Scarcely  had  its  folds  ap- 
peared in  the  breeze  ere  Gen.  Grant  was  there.  The 
rebels  fled.  Their  banner  fell,  and  the  star  and 
stripes  were  unfurled  in  its  stead. 

He  entered  the  service  with  great  determination 
and  immediately  began  active  duty.  This  was  the  be- 
ginning, and  until  the  surrender  of  Lee  at  Richmond 
he  was  ever  pushing  the  enemy  with  great  vigor  and 
effectiveness.  At  Belmont,  a  few  days  later,  he  sur- 
prised and  routed  the  rebels,  then  at  Fort  Henry 
won  another  victory.  Then  came  the  brilliant  fight 
at  Fort  Donelson.  The  nation  was  electrified  by  the 
victory,  and  the  brave  leader  of  the  boys  in  blue  was 
immediately  made  a  Major-General,  and  the  military 
iistrict  of  Tennessee  was  assigned  to  him. 

Like  all  great  captains.  Gen.  Grant  knew  well  how 
to  secure  the  results  of  victory.  He  immediately 
pushed  on  to  the  enemies'  lines.  Then  came  the 
terrible  battles  of  Pittsburg  Landing,  Corinth,  and  the 
siege  of  Vicksburg,  where  Gen.  Pemberton  made  an 
unconditional  surrender  of  the  city  with  over  thirty 
thousand  men  and  one-hundred  and  seventy-two  can- 
non. The  fall  of  Vicksburg  was  by  far  the  most 
severe  blow  which  the  rebels  had  thus  far  encountered, 
and  opened  up  the  Mississippi  from  Cairo  to  the  Gulf. 

Gen.  Crrant  was  next  ordered  to  co-operate  with 
Gen.  Banks  in  a  movement  upon  Texas,  and  pro- 
ceeded to  New  Orleans,  where  he  was  thrown  from 
his  horse,  and  received  severe  injuries,  from  which  he 
was  laid  up  for  months.  He  then  rushed  to  the  aid 
jf  Gens.  Rosecrans  and  Thomas  at  Chattanooga,  and 
by  a  wonderful  series  of  strategic  and  technical  meas- 
ures put  the  Union  Army  infighting  condition.  Then 
followed  the  bloody  battles  at  Chattanooga,  Lookout 
Mountain  and  Missionary  Ridge,  in  which  the  rebels 
were  routed  with  great  loss.  This  won  for  him  un- 
bounded praise  in  the  North.  On  the  4th  of  Febru- 
ary, 1864,  Congress  revived  the  grade  of  lieutenant- 
general,  and  the  rank  was  conferred  on  Gen.  Grant. 
He  repaired  to  Washington  to  receive  his  credentials 
and  enter  upon  tb'"  duties  of  his  new  office 


Gen.  Grant  decided  as  soon  as  he  took  charge  oi 
the  army  to  concentrate  the  widely-dispersed  National 
troops  for  an  attack  uporv  Richmond,  the  nominal 
capital  of  the  Rebellion,  and  endeavor  there  to  de- 
stroy the  rebel  armies  which  would  be  pjromptly  as- 
sembled from  all  quarters  for  its  defence.  The  whole 
continent  seemed  to  tremble  under  the  tramp  of  these 
majestic  armies,  rushing  to  the  decisive  battle  field. 
Steamers  were  crowded  with  troops.  Railway  trains 
were  burdened  with  closely  packed  thousands.  His 
plans  were  comprehensive  and  involved  a  series  of 
campaigns,  which  were  executed  with  remarkable  en- 
ergy and  ability,  and  were  consummated  at  the  sur- 
render of  Lee,  April  9,   1865. 

The  war  was  ended.  The  Union  was  saved.  The 
almost  unanimous  voice  of  the  Nation  declared  Gen. 
Grant  to  be  the  most  prominent  instrument  in  its  sal. 
vation.  The  eminent  services  he  had  thus  rendered 
the  country  brought  him  conspicuously  forward  as  the 
Republican  candidate  for  the  Presidential  chair. 

At  the  Republican  Convention  held  at  Chicago. 
May  21,  1868,  he  was  unanimously  nominated  for  the 
Presidency,  and  at  the  autumn  election  received  a 
majority  of  the  popular  vote,  and  214  out  of  294 
electoral  votes. 

The  National  Convention  of  the  Republican  party 
which  met  at  Philadelphia  on  the  5  th  of  June,  1872, 
placed  Gen.  Grant  in  nomination  for  a  second  term 
by  a  unanimous  vote.  The  selection  was  emphati- 
cally indorsed  by  the  people  five  months  later,  292 
electoral  votes  being   cast    for  him. 

Soon  after  the  close  of  his  second  term.  Gen.  Grant 
started  upon  his  famous  trip  around  the  world.  He 
visited  almost  every  country  of  the  civilized  world, 
and  was  everywhere  received  with  such  ovations 
and  demonstrations  of  respect  and  honor,  private 
as  well  as  public  and  official,  as  were  never  before 
bestowed  upon  any  citizen  of  the  United  States. 

He  was  the  most  prominent  candidate  before  the 
Republican  National  Convention  in  1880  for  a  re- 
nomination  for  President.  He  went  to  New  York  and 
embarked  in  the  brokerage  business  under  the  firm 
nameof  Grant  &  Ward.  The  latter  proved  a  villain, 
wrecked  Grant's  fortune,  and  for  larceny  was  sent  to 
the  penitentiary.  The  General  was  attacked  with 
cancer  in  the  throat,  but  suffered  in  his  stoic-like 
manner,  never  complaining.  He  was  re-instated  as 
General  of  the  Army  and  retired  by  Congress.  The 
cancer  soon  finished  its  deadly  work,  and  July  23, 
1885,  the  nation  went  in  mourning  over  the  death  of 
the  illustrious  General. 


K.  B.  Havks. 


NISETEEXTH  rRES/DE.XT. 


9> 


.«.•.<.•..>.":,'.•..<.  •-.'.•..'. 


A    .f'l    .-'i    .-'l    .'"I    -■■l 


RUTHERFORD  B.  HAYES. 


•^•■>  ■.•'■<,.•■■" 


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■  •  .1  •  .1  •  .1  •  .1 


■  1.  •  •.  ■  I.  ■  ■.  ".'i  •, '.  •  ' 


I  ..'1 .  'i  ■  'I  ■  'i  ■  'I  .  't  ■■•i  ■  ■> 


I.  •  I.  ■  .'.■ 


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1 


<0f 


UTHERFORH  B.  HAYES, 
the  nineteenth  President  of 
the  United  States,  was  born  in 
Delaware,  O.,  Oct.  4,  1822,  al- 
most three  months  after  the 
"^  death  of  his  father,  Rutherford 
,  Hayes.  His  ancestry  on  both 
the  paternal  and  maternal  sides, 
was  of  the  most  honorable  char- 
acter. It  can  be  traced,  it  is  said, 
as  far  back  as  1280,  when  Hayes  and 
Rutherford  were  two  Scottish  chief- 
tains, fighting  side  by  side  with 
Baliol,  William  Wallace  and  Robert 
Bruce.  Both  families  belonged  to  the 
nobility,  owned  extensive  estates, 
and  had  a  large  following.  Misfor- 
:ane  ovtrtaking  the  family,  George  Hayes  left  Scot- 
.and  in  1680,  and  settled  in  Windsor,  Conn.  His  son 
George  was-  bom  in  Windsor,  and  remained  there 
during  his  li/e.  Daniel  Hayes,  son  of  the  latter,  mar- 
ried Sarah  Lee,  and  lived  from  the  time  of  his  mar- 
riage until  his  death  in  Simsbury,  Conn.  Ezekiel, 
son  of  Daniel,  was  lx)rn  in  1724,  and  was  a  nianufac- 
turerof  scythe*  at  Biadfoid,  Conn.  Rutherford  Hayes, 
son  of  Ezekiel  aiid  grandfather  of  President  Hayes,  was 
bom  inNewHavcn,  in  .\ugust,  1756.  He  was  a  famier, 
blacksmith  and  lavcm-keeper.  He  emigrated  to 
Vemiont  at  an  unknown  date,  settling  in  Braitlelx>ro, 
where  he  <'stablislied  a  hotel.  Here  his  son  Ruth- 
eiibrd    Hayes     the  father   of  President  Hayes,  was 


born.  He  was  m^lfried,  in  September,  1813,  to  Sophia 
Birchard,  of  Wilmington,  Vt.,  whose  ancestors  emi- 
grated thither  from  Connecticut,  they  having  been 
among  the  wealthiest  and  best  fanilies  of  Norwich. 
Her  ancestry  on  the  male  side  are  traced  back  to 
1635,  to  John  Birchard,  one  of  the  principal  founders 
of  .\orwich.  Both  of  her  grandfathers  were  soldiers 
in  the  Revolutionary  War. 

The  father  of  President  Hayes  was  an  industrious 
frugal  and  oix:ned-hearted  man.  He  was  of  a  me 
chanical  turn,  and  could  mend  a  plow,  knit  a  slock- 
ing, or  do  almost  anything  else  that  he  choose  to 
undertake.  He  was  a  member  of  the  Church,  active 
in  all  the  benevolent  enterprises  of  the  town,  and  con- 
ducted his  business  on  Christian  principles.  After 
the  close  of  the  war  of  181 2,  for  reasons  inexplicable 
to  his  neighbors,  he  resolved  to  emif;rate  to   Ohio. 

The  journey  from  Vermont  to  Ohio  in  that  day 
when  there  were  no  canals,  steamers,  nor  railways, 
was  a  very  serious  affair.  A  tour  of  inspection  was 
first  made,  occupying  four  months.  Mr.  Hayes  deter 
mined  to  move  to  Delaware,  where  the  family  arrived 
in  1S17.  He  died  July  22,  1822,  a  victim  of  malarial 
fever,  less  than  three  months  before  the  birth  of  the 
son.of  whom  we  now  write.  Mrs.  Hayes,  in  her  sore  be- 
reavement, found  the  support  she  so  much  neetied  in 
her  brother  Sardis,  who  had  been  a  member  of  the 
household  from  the  day  of  its  departure  from  Ver- 
mont, and  in  an  orphan  girl  whom  she  h.id  adopted 
some  rime  before  as  an  act  of  charity. 

Mrs.  Hayes  at  this  period  was  very  weak,  and  the 


92 


RUTHERFORD  B.  HAYES. 


subject  of  this  sketch  was  so  feeble  at  birth  that  he 
was  not  expected  to  live  beyond  a  month  or  two  at 
most.  As  the  months  went  by  he  grew  weaker  and 
weaker,  so  that  the  neighbors  were  in  the  habit  of  in- 
quiring from  time  to  time  '"  if  Mrs.  Hayes'  baby  died 
last  night."  On  one  occasion  a  neighbor,  who  was  on 
fimiliar  terras  with  the  family,  after  alluding  to  the 
boy's  big  head,  and  the  mother's  assiduous  care  of 
him,  said  in  a  bantering  way,  "  That's  right !  Stick  to 
him.  Yoj  have  got  him  along  so  far,  and  I  shouldn't 
wonder  if  he  would  really  come  to  something  yet." 

"  You  need  not  laugh,"  said  Mrs.  Hayes.  "  You 
vait  and  see.  You  can't  tell  but  I  shall  make  him 
President  of  the  United  States  yet."  The  boy  lived, 
in  spite  of  the  universal  predictions  of  his  speedy 
death;  and  when,  in  1825,  his  older  brother  was 
drowned,  he  became,  if  possible,  still  dearer  to  his 
mother. 

The  boy  was  seven  years  old  before  he  w<:nt  to 
school.  His  education,  however,  was  not  neglected. 
He  probably  learned  as  much  from  his  mother  and 
!  ister  as  he  would  have  done  at  Sfhool.  His  sports 
were  almost  wholly  within  doors,  his  playmates  being 
his  sister  and  her  associates.  These  circumstances 
tended,  no  doubt,  to  foster  that  gentleness  of  dispo- 
sition, and  that  delicate  consideration  for  the  feelings 
of  others,  which  are  marked  traits  of  his  character. 

His  uncle  Sardis  Bircliard  took  the  deepest  interest 
kn  his  education ;  and  as  the  boy's  health  had  im- 
proved, and  he  was  making  good  progress  in  his 
studies,  he  projx)sed  to  send  him  to  college.  His  pre- 
paration commenced  with  a  tutor  at  home;  but  he 
was  afterwards  sent  for  one  year  to  a  professor  in  the 
Wesleyan  University,  in  Middletown,  Conn.  He  en- 
tered Kenyon  College  in  1S38,  at  the  age  of  sixteen, 
and  was  graduated  at  the  head  of  his  class  in   1842. 

Immediately  after  his  graduation  he  began  the 
study  of  law  in  the  office  of  Thomas  Sparrow,  Esq., 
in  Columbus.  Finding  his  opportunities  for  study  in 
Columbus  somewhat  limited,  he  determined  to  enter 
the  Law  School  at  Cambridge,  Mass.,  where  he  re- 
mained two  years. 

In  1845,  after  graduatmg  at  the  Law  School,  he  was 
admitted  to  the  bar  at  Marietta,  Ohio,  and  shortly 
afterward  went  into  practice  as  an  attorney-at-law 
with  Ralph  P.  Buckland,  of  Fremont.  Here  he  re- 
mained three  years,  acquiring  but  a  limited  practice, 
and  apparently  unambitious  of  distinction  in  his  pro- 
fession. 

^ji  1849  he  moved  to  Cincinnati,  where  his  ambi- 
tion found  a  new  stimulus.  For  several  years,  how- 
ever, his  progress  was  slow.  Two  events,  occurring  at 
this  period,  had  a  powerful  influence  upon  his  subse- 
cuent  ';fe.  One  of  these  was  his  marrage  with  Miss 
Lucy  Ware  AVebb,  daughter  of  Dr.  James  Webb,  of 
Ciiilicothe;  the  othei'  was  his  introduction  to  the  Cin- 
cinnati Literary'  Club,  a  body  embracing  among  its 
members  such  men  as'^hief  Justice  Salmon  P,,Chase^ 


Gen.  John  Pope,  Gov.  Edward  F.  Noyes,  and  many 
others  hardly  less  distinguished  in  after  life.  The 
marriage  was  a  fortunate  one  in  every  respect,  z.% 
ever)  body  knows.  Not  one  of  all  the  wives  of  our 
Presidents  was  more  universally  admired,  reverenced 
and  beloved  than  was  Mrs.  Hayes,  and  no  one  did 
more  than  she  toreflect  honor  uixjn  American  woman 
hood.  The  Literary  Cluu  brought  ilr.  Hayes  into 
constant  association  with  young  men  of  high  char- 
acter and  noble  aims,  and  lured  him  to  disi^lay  the 
qualities  so  long  hidden  by  his  bashfulne^s  and 
modesty. 

In  1856  he  was  nominated  to  the  office  of  Judgs  of 
the  Court  of  Common  Pleas;  but  he  declined  to  a.-. 
cept  the  nomination.  Two  years  later,  the  office  o( 
city  solicitor  becoming  vacant,  the  City  Council 
elected  him  far  the  une.xpired  term. 

In  1 86 1,  when  the  Rebellion  broke  out,  he  was  a;- 
the  zenith  of  his  professional  'if  ^  His  rank  at  the 
bar  was  among  the  the  first.  But  the  news  of  the 
attack  on  Fort  Sumpter  found  him  eager  to  take  -lo 
arms  for  the  defense  of  his  countrj-. 

His  militar)'  record  was  bright  and  illustrious.  In 
October,  186 1,  he  was  made  Lieutenant-Colonel,  and 
in  August,  1862,  promoted  Colonel  of  the  79th  Ohio 
regiment,  but  he  refused  to  leave  his  old  comrades 
and  go  among  strangers.  Subsequently,  however,  he 
was  made  Colonel  of  his  old  regiment.  At  the  battle 
of  South  Mountain  he  received  a  wound,  and  while 
faint  and  bleeding  displayed  courage  and  fortitude 
that  won  admiration  from  all. 

Col.  Hayes  was  detached  from  his  regiment,  after 
his  recovery,  to  act  as  Brigadier-General,  and  placed 
in  command  of  the  celebrated  Kanawha  division, 
and  for  gallant  and  meritorious  services  in  the  battles 
of  Winchester,  Fisher's  Hill  and  Cedar  Creek,  he  was 
promoted  Brigadier-General.  He  was  also  brevetted 
Major-General,  "for gallant  and  distinguished  services 
during  the  campaigns  of  1864,  in  West  Virginia."  In 
the  course  of  his  arduous  services,  four  horses  were 
shot  from  under  him,  and  he  was  wounded  four  times 

In  1864,  Gen.  Hayes  was  elected  to  Congress,  from 
the  Second  Ohio  District,  which  had  long  been  Dem- 
ocratic. He  was  not  present  during  the  campaign, 
and  after  his  election  was  importuned  to  resign  his 
commission  in  the  army  ;  but  he  finally  declared,  "  I 
shall  never  come  to  Washington  until  I  can  come  by 
the  way  of  Richmond."  He  was  re-elected  in  1S66. 

Ir.  1867,  Gen  Hayes  was  elected  Governor  of  Ohio, 
over  Hon.  Allen  G.  Thurman,  a  popular  Democrat. 
In  1S69  was  re-eieoted  over  George  H.  Pendleton 
He  was  elected  Governor  for  the  third  term  in   1875. 

In  1876  he  was  the  standard  bearer  of  the  Repub- 
lican Party  in  the  Presidential  contest,  and  after  a 
hard  long  contest  was  chosen  President,  and  was  ir, 
au£;urated  Monday,  March  5,  1875.  He  served  his 
full  term,  not,  however,  with  sarisfacrion  to  his  party, 
but  his  administration  was  an  average  0^.= 


J.  A.  Garfield. 


rirf..\  rir.  Til  pRr.siDEXT. 


v)5 


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♦    * 


^^f^^-- 


.  JAMKS   A.  UAKFIKLI). 


( 


j^ 


1?^ 

■'.v;vn* 

AMES  A.  GARFIELD,  twen- 
:ieth  President  of  the  United 
"■tales,    was    born    Nov.    19, 
:  S3 1 ,  in  the  woods  of  Orange, 
"uyahoga  Co.,  O      His    par- 
ijnts  were  Abram  and    Eliza 
1  Ballou)    Garfield,   both   of  New 
I'.ngland  ancestr)'  and  from  fami- 
lies well  known  in  the  early  his- 
tory of  that  section  of  our  coun- 
,  but  had  moved  to  the  Western 
ivcserve,  in  Ohio,  early  in  its  settle- 
ment. 

The  house  in  which  James  .\.  was 
L^jrn  was  not  unlike  the  houses  of 
poor  (Jhio  farmers  of  that  day.  It 
;££  about  20x30  feet,  built  of  logs,  with  the  spaces  be- 
•ween  the  logs  filled  with  clay.  His  father  was  a 
.•iard  working  farmer,  and  he  soon  had  his  fields 
cleared,  an  orchard  planted,  and  a  log  barn  built, 
f  he  household  comprised  the  father  and  mother  and 
heir  four  tliildren — Mchetabcl,  'I'liomas,  Mary  and 
"ames.  In  May,  1S23,  the  father,  from  a  cold  con- 
.. -acted  in  helping  to  put  out  a  forest  fire,  died.  At 
•his  time  James  was  alx>ut  eighteen  months  old,  and 
Thomas  about  ten  years  old.  No  one,  pcrhajw,  can 
(cU  how  much  James  was  indeLted  to  his  biother's 
toil  and  self  sacrifice  during  the  twenty  years  suc- 
ceeding his  fathers  death,  but  undoubtedly  very 
much.  He  now  lives  in  Michigan,  and  the  two  sis- 
itrs  live  in  .Solon,  O.,  near  their  birthplace. 

The  early  educational  advantages  young  Garfield 
enjoyed  were  very  limited,  yet  he  made  the  most  of 
tneni.  He  lalx)red  at  farm  work  for  others,  did  car- 
|>cnit.-r  work,  chopped  wood,  or  did  anything  that 
would  bring  in  a  few  dollars  to  aid  his  widowed 
mother  in  he'  'tnggles  to  keep  the  little  family  to- 


I 


gether.  Nor  was  Gen.  Garfield  ever  ashamed  of  his 
origin,  and  he  never  forgot  the  friends  of  his  strug- 
gling childhood,  youth  and  manhood,  neither  did  they 
ever  forget  him.  When  in  the  highest  seats  of  honor 
the  humblest  fiiend  of  his  boyhood  was  as  kindly 
greeted  as  ever.  The  jxxjrest  laborer  was  sure  of  the 
sympathy  of  one  who  had  known  all  the  bitterness 
of  want  and  the  sweetness  of  bread  earned  by  the 
sweat  of  the  brow.  He  was  ever  the  simple,  plain, 
modest  gentleman. 

The  highest  ambition   of  young  Garfield  until  hi 
was  about  sixteen   years  old  was  to  be  a  captain  oi 
a  vessel  on  Lake  Erie.     He  was  anxious  to  go  aboard 
a  vessel,  which  his  mother  strongly  opposed.     She 
finally  consented  to  his  going  to  Cleveland,  with  th- 
understanding,  however,  that  he  should  try  to  obtair  ■ 
some  other  kind  of  employment.     He  walked  all  the 
way  to  Cleveland.   This  was  his  first  visit  to  the  city 
Afier  making  many  applications  for  work,  and  lr>'ing 
to  get   aboard  a   lake  vessel,  and   not  meeting  with 
success,  he  engaged  as  a  driver  for  his  cousin,  Amos 
I^tcher,  on  tlie  Ohio  &  Pennsylvania  Canal.     He  re- 
mained at  this  work  but  a  short  time  when  he  wen 
home,    and  attended   the    seminary    at   Chester   for 
about  three  years,  when  he  entered   Hiram  and  the 
Eclectic  Institute,  teaching  a  few   terms  of  school  in 
the  meantime,  and  doing  other  work.     This   school 
was  started  by  the   Disciples  of  Christ  in    1850,  of 
which  church  he  was   then  a  meml>er.     He  l)ccamc 
janitor  and  bell-ringer  in  order  to  help  pay  his  way 
He  then  became  both  teacher  and  |)upil.     He  soon 
"exhausted  Hiram  "and  needed  more;  hence,  in  the 
fall  of  1854,  he  entered  Williams  College,  from  which 
he  graduated  in  1856,  taking  one  of  the  highest  ho  .- 
ors  of  his  class.     He  afterwards  returned  to  Hiran) 
College  as  its  President.     .\s  al)ove  stated,  he   early 
united    with    the   Christian   or   Diciples    Church    at 
Hiram,  and  was  ever  after  a  devoted,  zealous  mrm- 
l)Cr,  often  preaching  in  its  pulpit  and    ])laces  where 
he  happened  to  be.     Dr.  Noah   Porter,  President  of 
I'ale  College,  says  of  him  in  reference  to  his  religion : 


96 


JAMES  A.  GARFIELD. 


"  President  Garfield  was  more  than  a  man  of 
strong  moral  and  religious  convictions.  His  whole 
history,  from  boyhood  to  the  last,  shows  that  duty  to 
man  and  to  God,  and  devotion  to  Christ  and  life  and 
faith  and  spiritual  commission  were  controlling  springs 
of  his  being,  and  to  a  more  than  usual  degree.  In 
my  judgraem:  there  is  no  more  interesting  feature  of 
nis  character  than  his  loyal  allegiance  to  the  body  of 
Christians  in  which  he  was  trained,  and  the  fervent 
sympathy  which  he  ever  showed  in-  their  Christian 
communion.  Not  many  of  the  few  'wise  and  mighty 
and  noble  who  are  called'  show  a  similar  loyalty  to 
the  less  stately  and  cultured  Christian  comnmnions 
in  which  they  have  been  reared.  Too  often  it  is  true 
that  as  they  step  upward  in  social  and  political  sig- 
nificance they  step  upward  from  one  degree  to 
another  in  some  of  the  many  types  of  fashionable 
Christianity.  President  Garfield  adhered  to  the 
:hurch  of  his  mother,  the  church  in  which  he  was 
trained,  and  in  which  he  served  as  a  pillar  and  an 
evangelist,  and  yet  with  the  largest  and  most  unsec- 
'arian  charity  for  all  'who  loveour  Lord  in  sincerity.'" 

Mr.  Garfield  was  united  in  marriage  with  Miss 
Lucretia  Rudolph,  Nov.  ii,  185S,  who  proved  herself 
worthy  as  the  wife  of  one  whom  all  tiie  world  loved  and 
mourned.  To  them  were  born  seven  children,  five  of 
v/hom  are  still  living,  four  boys  and  one  girl. 

Mr.  Garfield  made  his  first  political  speeches  in  1S56, 
jn  Hiram  and  the  neighboring  villages,  and  three 
years  later  he  began  to  speak  at  county  mass-meet- 
ings, and  became  the  favorite  speaker  wherever  he 
was.  During  this  year  he  was  elected  to  the  Ohio 
Senate.  He  also  began  to  study  law  at  Cleveland, 
and  in  1861  was  admitted  to  the  bar.  The  great 
Rebellion  broke  out  in  the  early  part  of  this  year, 
and  Mr.  Garfield  at  once  resolved  to  fight  as  he  had 
talked,  and  enlisted  to  defend  the  old  flag.  He  re- 
ceived his  commission  as  Lieut.-Colonel  of  the  Forty- 
second  Regiment  of  Ohio  Volunteer  Infantry,  Aug. 
14,  1861.  He  was  immediately  put  into  active  ser- 
vice, and  before  he  had  ever  seen  a  gun  fired  in  action, 
was  placed  in  command  of  four  regiments  of  infantrj' 
and  eight  companies  of  cavalry,  charged  with  the 
work  of  driving  out  of  his  native  State  the  officer 
'Humphrey  Marshall)  reputed  to  be  the  ablest  of 
those,  not  educated  to  war  whom  Kentucky  had  given 
to  the  Rebellion.  This  work  was  bravely  and  speed- 
ily accomplished,  although  against  great  odds.  Pres- 
ident Lincoln,  on  his  success  commissioned  him 
Brigadier-General,  Jan.  10,  1862;  and  as  "he  had 
been  the  youngest  man  in  the  Ohio  Senate  two  years 
before,  so  now  he  was  the  youngest  General  in  the 
army."  He  was  with  Gen.  Buell's  army  at  Shiloh, 
in  its  operations  around  Corinth  and  its  march  through 
Alabama.  He  was  then  detailed  as  a  member  of  the 
General  Court-Martial  for  the  trial  of  Gen.  Fitz-John 
Porter.  He  was  then  ordered  to  report  to  Gen.  Rose- 
crans,  and  was  assigned  to  the  "  Chief  of  Staff." 

The  military  b^'story  of  Gen.  Garfield  closed  with 


his  brilliant  services  at  Chickamauga,  where  he  won 
the  stars  of  the  Major-General. 

Without  an  effort  on  his  part  Gei?  Garfield  was 
elected  to  Congress  in  the  fall  of -1862  from  the 
Nineteenth  District  of  Ohio.  This  section  of  Ohio 
had  been  represented  in  Congiess  for  si.xty  year* 
mainly  by  two  men — Elisha  AVhittlesey  and  Joshui. 
R.  Giddings.  It  was  not  without  a  struggle  that  he 
resigned  his  place  in  the  army.  At  the  time  he  en- 
tered Congress  he  was  the  youngest  member  in  thai 
body.  Ther^  he  remained  by  successive  re- 
elections  until  he  was  elected  President  in  1880. 
Of  his  labors  in  Congress  Senator  Hoar  says  :  "  Sinct 
the  year  1864  you  cannot  think  of  a  question  which 
has  been  debated  in  Congress,  or  discussed  before  -a. 
tribunel  of  the  American  people,  in  regard  to  whicl 
you  will  not  find,  if  you  wish  instruction,  the  argu- 
ment  on  one  side  stated,  in  almost  every  instance 
better  than  by  anybody  else,  in  some  speech  made  in 
the  House  of  Representatives  or  on  the  hustings  by 
Mr.  Garfield." 

Upon  Jan.  14,  1880,  Gen.  Garfield  was  elected  to 
the  U.  S.  Senate,  and  on  the  eighth  of  June,  of  the 
same  year,  was  nominated  as  the  candidate  of  his 
party  for  President  at  the  great  Chicago  Convention. 
He  was  elected  in  the  following  November,  and  on 
March  4,  iSSi,  was  inaugurated.  Probably  no  ad- 
ministration ever  opened  its  existence  under  brighter 
auspices  than  that  of  President  Garfield,  and  every 
day  it  grew  in  favor  with  the  people,  and  by  the  first 
of  July  lie  had  completed  all  the  initiatory  and  pre- 
liminary work  of  his  administration  and  was  prepar- 
ing to  leave  the  city  to  meet  his  friends  at  Williams 
College.  While  on  his  way  and  at  the  depot,  in  com- 
pany with  Secretary  Blaine,  a  man  stepped  behind 
him,  drew  a  revolver,  and  fired  directly  at  his  back. 
The  President  tottered  and  fell,  and  as  he  did  so  the 
assassin  fired  a  second  shot,  the  bullet  cutting  the 
left  coat  sleeve  of  his  victim,  but  in.licting  no  further 
injury.  It  has  been  very  truthfully  said  that  this  was 
"  the  shot  that  was  heard  round  the  worid  "  Never 
before  in  the  history  of  the  Nation  had  anything  oc 
curred  which  so  nearly  froze  the  blood  of  the  people 
for  the  moment,  as  this  awful  deed.  He  was  smit- 
ten on  the  brightest,  gladdest  day  of  all  his  life,  and 
was  at  the  summit  of  his  power  and  hope.  For  eighty 
days,  all  during  the  hot  months  of  July  and  August, 
he  lingered  and  suffered.  He,  however,  remained 
master  of  himself  till  the  last,  and  by  his  magnificent 
bearing  was  teaching  the  country  and  the  world  the 
noblest  of  human  lessons — how  to  live  grandly  in  the 
very  clutch  of  death.  Great  in  life,  he  was  surjiass- 
ingly  great  in  death.  He  passed  serenely  away  Sept. 
19,  1883,  at  Elberon,  N.  J.,  on  the  very  bank  of  the 
ocean,  where  he  had  been  taken  shortly  previous.  The 
world  wept  at  his  death,  as  it  never  had  done  on  the 
death  of  any  other  man  who  had  ever  lived  upon  it. 
The  murderer  was  duly  tried,  found  guilty  and  exe- 
cuted, in  one  year  after  he  committed  the  foul  deed 


C.  A.  Arthur. 


TWENTY. FIRST  PRESIDRXT. 


<)9 


vi  !  (  W,  VVH  1'/  i^'     J\.       A   I  ,'M'  ;  IJi  Ua 


^ 


''^'•"' 


HESTER  A.  ARTHUR, 
twenty-first  Presi'^.wiu  of  the 
United  States  was  born  in 
Franklin  Cour  ty,  Vermont,  on 

re    thefifthofOdober,  1810,  andis 
the  oldest   of  a   family    of  two 
sons  and    five   daughters.     His 
father  was  the  Rev.  Ur.  William 
Arthur,  a  Baptist  cJ'.rgyman,  who 
emigrated  to  tb.s  country  from 
iv-     'V,    the  county  Ant.nm,   Ireland,   in 
<j.     his  i8th  year,  and  died  in  1875,  in 
'a   Newton ville,   neai    Albany,   after  a 


ifi 

r 


long  and  successful  ministry. 

Young  Arthur  was  educated  at 
Union  College,  S<  henectady,  where 
he  excelled  in  all  his  studies.  Af- 
ter his  graduation  he  taught  school 
Vermont  for  two  years,  and  at 
.10  expiration  cf  that  time  came  to 
New  York,  with  S500  in  his  [ocket, 
and  eiUered  the  office  of  ex-Judge 
E.  D.  Culver  as  student.  After 
being  admitted  to  the  bar  he  fonned 
i  partiiershi\i  with  his  intimate  friend  and  room-mate, 
Hcnr)'  D.  Gaidiner,  with  the  intention  of  i)racticing 
in  the  West,  and  for  three  months  they  roamed  about 
I'lj  the  Western  States  -in  search  of  an  eligible  site, 
l)ut  in  the  end  returned  to  New  York,  where  they 
hung  out  their  shingle,  and  entered  upon  a  success, 
fill  career  almost  from  the  start.  General  Arthur 
roon  afterward  ■rvTP'-d  the  daughter   of  Lieutenant 


Hemdon,  of  the  United  States  Navy,  who  was  lo«t  at 
sea  Congress  voted  a  gold  medal  to  his  widow  11. 
recognition  of  the  bravery  he  displayed  on  that  occa- 
sion. Mrs.  Arthur  died  shortly  before  Mr.  .Arthur's 
nomination  to  the  Vice  Presidency,  leaving  two 
children. 

Gen.  Arthur  obtained  considerable  legal  celebrity 
in  his  first  great  case,  the  famous  Lenimon  suit, 
brought  to  recover  |K)ssession  of  eight  slaves  who  had 
been  declared  free  by  Judge  Paine,  of  the  Sujierior 
Court  of  New  York  City.  It  was  in  1852  that  Jon. 
athan  Lenimon,  of  Virginia,  went  to  New  York  with 
his  slaves,  intending  to  ship  them  to  Texas,  when 
they  svere  discovered  and  freed.  The  Judge  decided 
that  they  could  not  be  held  by  the  owner  under  the 
Fugitive  Slave  Law.  A  howl  of  rage  went  up  from 
the  South,  and  the  Virginia  Legislature  authorized  the 
Attorney  Gener.-.l  of  that  State  to  assist  in  an  appeal. 
Wm.  M.  Evarts  and  Chester  A.  Arthur  were  employed 
to  represent  the  People,  and  they  won  their  case, 
which  then  went  to  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United 
States.  Charles  O'Conor  here  esjxjused  the  cause 
of  the  slave-holders,  but  he  too  was  beaten  by  Messrs 
Evarts  and  Arthur,  and  a  long  step  was  taken  toward 
the  emancipation  of  the  black  race. 

Another  great  service  was  rendered  by  General 
Arthur  in  the  same  cause  in  1856.  Lizzie  Jennings, 
a  res|)ectable  colored  woman,  was  put  off  a  Fourth 
Avenue  car  with  violence  after  she  had  paid  her  fare. 
General  Arthur  sued  on  her  behalf,  and  secured  a 
verdict  of  $500  damages.  The  next  day  the  compa- 
ny issued  an  order  to  admit  colored  persons  to  ride 
on  their  cars,  and   the  other  car  companies  quickly 


CHESTER  A.  ARTHUR. 


followed  their  example.  Before  that  the  Sixth  Ave- 
nue Coni|3any  ran  a  few  special  cars  for  colored  per- 
sons and  the  other  lines  refused  to  let  them  ride  at  all. 

General  Arthur  was  a  delegate  to  tlje  Convention 
at  Saratoga  that  founded  the  Republican  party. 
Previous  to  the  war  he  was  Judge-Advocate  of  the 
Second  Brigade  of  the  State  of  New  York,  and  Gov- 
ernor Morgan,  of  that  State,  appointed  hnn  Engineer- 
in-Chief  of  his  staff.  In  1861,  he  was  made  Inspec- 
tor General,  and  soon  afterward  became  Quartermas- 
ter-General. In  each  of  these  offices  he  rendered 
great  service  to  the  Government  during  the  war.  At 
the  end  of  Governor  Morgan's  term  he  resumed  the 
practice  of  the  law,  forming  a  partnership  with  Mr. 
Ransom,  and  then  Mr.  Phelps,  the  District  Attorney 
of  New  Yoik,  was  added  to  the  firm.  The  legal  prac- 
tice of  this  well-known  firm  was  very  large  and  lucra- 
tive, each  of  the  gentlemen  composing  it  were  able 
lawyers,  and  possessed  a  splendid  local  reputation,  if 
not  indeed  one  of  national  extent. 

He  always  took  a  leading  part  in  State  and  city 
politics.  He  was  appointed  Collector  of  the  Port  of 
New  York  by  President  Grant,  Nov.  21  1872,  to  suc- 
ceed Thomas  Murphy,  and  held  the  office  until  July, 
20,  1878,  when  he  was  succeeded  by  Collector  Merritt. 

Mr.  Arthur  was  nominated  on  the  Presidential 
ticket,  with  Gen.  James  A.  Garfield,  at  the  famous 
National  Republican  Convention  held  at  Chicago  in 
June,  1880.  This  was  perhaps  the  greatest  political 
convention  thp.t  ever  assembled  on  the  continent.  It 
was  composed  of  the  'wading  politicians  of  the  Re- 
publican party,  all  able  men,  and  each  stood  firm  and 
fought  vigorously  and  with  signal  tenacity  for  their 
respective  candidates  that  were  before  the  conven- 
tion for  the  nomination.  Finally  Gen.  Garfield  re- 
ceived the  nomination  for  President  and  Gen.  Arthur 
for  Vice-President.  The  campaign  which  followed 
was  one  of  the  most  animated  known  in  the  history  of 
our  country.  Gen.  Hancock,  the  standard-bearer  of 
the  Democratic  party,  was  a  popular  man,  and  his 
party  made  a  valiant  fight  for  his  election. 

Finally  the  election  came  and  the  country's  choice 
>vas  Garfield  and  Arthur.  They  were  inaugurated 
March  4,  1881,  as  President  and  Vice-President. 
K  few  months  only  had  passed  ere  the  newly  chosen 
President  was  the  victim  of  the  assassin's  bullet.  Then 
came  terrible  weeks  of  suffering, — those  moments  of 
anxious  suspense,  when  the  hearts  of  all  civilized  na- 


tions were  throbbing  in  unison,  longing  for  the  re- 
covery of  the  noble,  the  good  President.  The  remark- 
able patience  that  he  manifested  during  those  hours 
and  weeks,  and  even  months,  of  the  most  terrible  suf- 
fering man  has  often  been  called  upon  to  endure,  was 
seemingly  more  than  human.  It  was  certainly  God- 
like. During  all  this  period  of  deepest  anxiety  Mr, 
Arthur's  every  move  was  watched,  and  be  it  said  to  hiS' 
credit  that  his  every  action  displayed  only  an  earnest 
desire  that  the  suffering  Garfield  might  recover,  to 
serve  the  remainder  of  the  term  he  had  so  auspi- 
ciously begun.  Not  a  selfish  feeling  was  manifested 
in  deed  or  look  of  this  man,  even  though  the  most 
honored  ]X)sition  in  the  world  was  at  any  moment 
likely  to  fall  to  him. 

At  last  God  in  his  mercy  relieved  President  Gar- 
field from  further  suffering,  and  the  world,  as  nevei 
before  in  its  history  over  the  death  of  any  othei 
man,  wept  at  his  bier.  Then  it  became  the  duty  o^ 
the  Vice  President  to  assume  the  responsibilities  oi 
the  hich  office,  and  he  took  the  oath  in  New  York. 
Sept.  20,  18S1.  The  position  was  an  embarrassing 
one  to  him,  made  doubly  so  from  the  facts  that  all 
eyes  were,  on  him,  anxious  to  know  what  he  would  do, 
what  policy  he  would  pursue,  and  who  he  would  se- 
lect as  advisers.  The  duties  of  the  office  had  been 
greatly  neglected  during  the  President's  long  illness,' 
and  many  important  measures  were  to  be  immediately 
decided  by  him ;  and  still  farther  to  embarrass  him  he 
did  not  fail  to  realize  under  what  circumstances  he 
became  President,  and  knew  the  feelings  of  many  on 
this  point.  Under  these  trying  circumstances  President 
Arthur  took  the  reins  of  the  Government  in  his  owi, 
hands ;  and,  as  embarrassing  as  were  the  condition  of 
affair.'  he  happily  surprised  the  nation,  acting  sc 
•wiseh  hat  but  few  criticisea  Ais  administration. 
He  served  the  nation  well  and  faithfully,  until  the 
close  of  his  administration,  March  4,  1885,  and  was 
a  popular  candidate  before  his  party  for  a  second 
term.  His  name  was  ably  presented  before  the  con- 
vention at  Chicago,  and  was  received  with  great 
favor,  and  doubtless  but  for  the  personal  popularity 
of  one  of  the  opposing  candidates,  he  would  have 
been  selected  as  the  standard-bearer  of  his  party 
for  another  campaign.  He  retired  to  private  life  car- 
rying with  him  the  best  wishes  of  the  American  peo- 
ple, whom  he  had  served  in  a  manner  satisfactory 
tf  them  and  with  credit  to  himself. 


S.  Grover  Cleveland. 


TWENTY-SECOND  FRESJDFXT. 


'03 


:--i-;;:H*K:i:5^3iHNSSe<»3J&*i.::j---,  ■ 


^.^ 


(- 


—     -y 


.4 


TEPHEN  GROVER  CLEVE- 
LAND, ilie  twenty- second  Pres- 
ident of  the  United  States,  was 
born  in  1837,  in  the  obscure 
town  of  Cildwell,  Essex  Co., 
N.  J.,  and  in  a  little  two-and-a- 
ii.ih-story  white  house  whicli  is  still 
standing,  characteristically  to  mark 
the  humble  birth-place  of  one  of 
America's  great  men  in  striking  con- 
trast with  the  Old  World,  where  all 
men  high  in  office  must  be  high  in 
origin  and  born  in  the  cradle  of 
wealth.  When  the  subject  of  this 
sketch  was  three  years  of  age,  his 
father,  who  was  a  Presbyterian  min- 
ister, with  a  large  family  and  a  small  salary,  moved, 
by  way  of  the  Hudson  River  and  Erie  Canal,  to 
Fayetteville,  in  search  of  an  increased  income  and  a 
larger  field  of  work.  Fayetteville  was  then  the  most 
itraggling  of  country  villages,  about  five  miles  from 
PomiKjy  Hill,  where  Governor  Seymour  was  born. 

At  the  last  meationed  place  young  Grover  com- 
menced going  to  school  in  the  "good,  old-fashioned 
way."  and  presumably  distinguished  himself  after  the 
manner  of  all  village  boys,  in  doing  the  things  he 
ought  not  to  do.  Such  is  the  distinguishing  trait  of 
all  geniuses  and  independent  thinkers.  When  he 
arrived  at  the  age  of  14  ye.irs,  he  had  outgrown,  the 
cauacity  of  the  village  school  and  expressed  a  most 


emphatic  desire  to  be  sent  to  an  academy.     To  this 
his  father  decidedly  objected.     Academies  in  those 
days  cost  money;  besides,  his  father  wanted  him  to 
become    self-supiwrting    by    the    quickest   possible 
means,  and  this  at  that  time  in   Fayetteville  seemed 
to  be  a  position  in  a  country  store,  wherer  his  father 
and  the  large  family  on  his  hands  had   considerable 
intliience.    Grover  was  to  be  paid  $50  for  his  services 
the  first  year,  and  if  he  proved  trustworthy  he  was  to 
receive  $[oo  the  second  year.     Here  the  lad  com- 
menced iiis  career  as  salesman,  and  in  two  years  he 
had  earned  so  good  a  reputation  for  trustworthiness 
that  his  employers  desired  to  retain  him  for  an  in- 
definite  length  of  time.     Otherwise   he  did   not  ex- 
hibit as  yet  any  particular  "  flashes  of   genius  "  or 
eccentricities  of  talent.     He  was  simply  a  good  boy. 
But  instead  of  remaining  with  this  firm  in  Fayette- 
ville, he  went  with  the  family  in  their  removal  to 
Clinton,  w'.iere  he  had  an  opportunity  of  attending  a 
high   school.     Here    he    industriously  pursued    his 
studies  until  the  family  removed  with  him  to  a  jwint 
on  Black  River  known  as   the  "  Holland  Patent,"  a 
village  of  500  or  600  people,  15  miles  north  of  Uiica, 
Nf.  Y.     .\t  this  place  his  father  died,  after  preaching 
but  three  Sundays.     This  event  broke  up  the  family, 
and  Grover  set  out  for  >few  York  City  to  accept,  at  a 
small  s.il.try,  the  [wsition  of  "  under-teacher"  in  an 
asylum  for  the  blind.     He  taught  faithfully  for  two 
years,  and  although  he  oblain^-d  a  good  reputation  in 
this  capacity,  he  concludi'd  that  teaching  was  not  his 


S.   GROVE R   CLEVELAND. 


calling  for  life,  and,  reversing  the  traditional  order, 
he  left  the  city  to  seek  his  fortune,  instead  of  going 
to  a  city.  He  first  thought  of  Cleveland,  Ohio,  as 
thfire  was  some  charm  in  that  name  for  him;  but 
before  proceeding  to  that  place  he  went  to  Buffalo  to 
tsk  the  advice  of  his  uncle,  Lewis  F.  Allan,  a  noted 
stock-breeder  of  that  place.  The  latter  did  not 
speak  enthusiastically.  "What  is  it  you  want  to  do, 
my  boy?"  he  asked.  "Well,  sir,  I  want  to  study 
lav»,"  was  the  reply,  "  Good  gracious !  "  remarked 
ih«  old  gentleman ;  "  do  you,  indeed  1  What  ever  put 
that  into  your  head?  How  much  money  have  you 
got?"  "Well,  sir,  to  tell  the  truth,  I  haven't  got 
any. 

After  a  long  consultation,  his  uncle  offered  him  a 
place  temporarily  as  assistant  herd-keeper,  at  $50  a 
year,  while  he  could  "look  around."  One  day  soon 
afterward  he  boldly  walked  into  the  office  of  Rogers, 
Bowen  &  Rogers,  of  Buffalo,  and  told  Ihem  what  he 
wanted.  A  number  of  young  men  were  already  en- 
gaged in  the  office,  but  Grovej's  persistency  won,  and 
he  was  finally  permitted  to  come  as  an  office  boy  and 
Have  the  use  of  the  law  library,  for  the  nominal  sum 
of  $3  or  $4  a  week.  Out  of  this  he  had  to  pay  for 
his  board  and  washing.  The  walk  to  and  from  his 
luncle's  was  a  long  and  rugged  one;  and,  although 
I  the  first  winter  was  a  memorably  severe  one,  his 
shoes  were  out  of  repair  and  his  overcoat — he  had 
none — yet  he  was  nevertheless  prompt  and  regular. 
On  the  first  day  of  his  service  here,  his  senior  em- 
ployer threw  down  a  copy  of  Blackstone  before  him 
with  a  bang  that  made  the  dust  fly,  saying  "That's 
where  they  all  begin."  A  titter  ran  around  the  little 
circle  of  clerks  and  students,  as  they  thought  that 
vras  enough  to  scare  young  Grover  out  of  his  plans  ; 
out  in  due  time  he  mastered  that  cumbersome  volume. 
Then,  as  ever  afterward,  however,  Mr.  Cleveland 
exhibited  a  talent  for  executiveness  rather  than  for 
chasing  principles  through  all  their  metaphysical 
possibilities.  "  Let  us  quit  talking  and  go  and  do 
t,"  was  practically  his  motto. 

The  first  public  office  to  which  Mr.  Cleveland  was 
elected  vi^as  that  of  Sheriff  of  Erie  Co.,  N.  Y.,  in 
which  Buffalo  is  situated;  and  in  such  capacity  it  fell 
to  his  duty  to  inflict  capital  pi'i'.lshment  upon  two 
cainiinals.  In  t88i  he  was  elected  Mayor  of  the 
City  of  Buffalo,  on  the  Democratic  ticket,  with  es- 
pecial reference  to  the  bringing  about  certain  reforms 


in  the  administration  of  the  municipal  affairs  of  that 
cit)'.  In  this  office,  as  well  as  that  of  Sheriff,  his 
performance  of  duty  has  generally  been  considered 
fair,  with  possibly  a  few  exceptions  which  were  fer- 
reted out  and  magnified  during  the  last  Presidential 
campaign.  As  a  specimen  of  his  plain  l.-inguage  in 
a  veto  message,  we  quote  from  one  vetoing  an  iniqul 
tous  street-cleaning  contract:  "This  is  a  time  fov 
plain  speech,  and  my  objection  to  your  action  shall 
be  plainly  stated.  I  regard  it  as  the  culmination  of 
a  mos  bare-faced,  impudent  and  shameless  scheme 
to  betray  the  interests  of  the  peopls  and  to  worse 
than  squander  the  people's  money."  The  New  York 
Sun  afterward  very  highly  commended  Mr.  Cleve- 
land's administration  as  Mayor  of  Buffalo,  and  there- 
upon recommended  him  for  Governor  of  the  Empire 
State.  To  the  latter  office  he  was  elected  in  1882, 
and  his  administration  of  the  affairs  of  State  was 
generally  satisfactory.  The  mistakes  he  made;  if 
any,  were  made  very  public  throughout  the  nation 
after  he  was  nominated  for  President  of  the  United 
States.  For  this  high  office  he  was  nominated  July 
II,  1884,  by  the  National  Democratic  Convention  at 
Chicago,  when  other  competitors  were  Thomas  F. 
Bayard,  Roswell  P.  Flower,  Thomas  A.  Hendricks, 
Benjamin  F.  Butler,  Allen  G.  Thurman,  etc.;  and  he 
was  elected  by  the  people,  by  a  majority  of  about  a 
thousand,  over  the  brilliant  and  long-tried  Repub- 
lican statesman,  James  G.  Blaine.  President  Cleve- 
land resigned  his  office  as  Governor  of  New  York  in 
January,  1885,  in  order  to  prepare  for  his  duties  as 
the  Chief  Executive  of  ihe  United  States,  in  which 
capacity  his  term  conimenced  at  noon  on  the  4th  of 
March,  1885. 

The  silver  question  precipitated  a  controversy 
between  those  who  were  in  favor  of  the  continu- 
ance of  silver  coinage  and  those  who  were  opposed, 
Mr.  Cleveland  answering  for  the  latter,  even  before 
his  inauguration. 

On  June  2,  1886,  President  Cleveland  married 
Frances,  daughter  of  his  deceased  friend  and 
partner,  Oscar  Folsom,  of  the  Buffalo  Bar.  Their 
union  has  been  blessed  by  the  birth  of  one  daugh- 
ter, Ruth.  In  the  campaign  of  1888,  President 
Cleveland  was  renominated  by  his  party,  but  the 
Republican  candidate.  Gen.  Benjamin  Harrison, 
was  victorious.  In  the  nominations  of  1892  these 
two  candidates  for  the  highest  position  in  the  gift 
of  the  people  were  again  pitted  against  each  other 
and  President  Cleveland  was  victorious  by  an 
overwhelming  majority. 


Benjamin  Harrison. 


"TWr.XTT-THIRD  PRE«;iDENT. 


«>»o.^JX'^^-«»»— — Vk 


jKNJAMIN    HARRISON,  th« 
tweiity-thirtl     President,    is 
the  desceiuiaiit  of  one  of  the 
historical   fnmilies  of  this 
country.     The  head  of  the 
,,      -J^    fainilj' was  a  Major  General 
^J-^fl    Harrison,  one  of  Oliver 
^''  Cromwell's  trii:5tcd   follow, 

ers  and  fighters.  In  the  zenith  of  Crom- 
well's pc«wer  it  became  '.h>.  duty  of  this 
Harrison  to  iiartici|>ate  ai  ttie  trial  of 
Charles  I,  and  ifterwanl  tc  sign  the 
deaib  warrant  of  the  kin^.  lie  subse- 
qiientlj  paid  for  this  wiili  his  life.  I>eing 
hung  Oct.  13,  16C0.  His  descendants 
came  to  America,  and  the  next  of  the 
family  that  apjuars  in  history  is  Benja- 
rcin  'iarrison,  of  Virginia, great-grand- 
father of  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  and 
after  whom  he  was  named.  Iknjamin  Harrison 
-.vas  a  memljer  of  the  Continental  Congress  (hiring 
the  years  i774-5-C,  and  was  one  of  the  original 
signers  of  the  DecUration  of  Indei)cndence.  He 
wa  three  times  olectt-d  Gorernor  of  Nirginia. 
'^en     William   Henry   Harrison,  the  ton  of  the 


distinguuhed  patriot  of  the  Revolation,  after  a  sao- 
cessful  career  as  a  soldier  during  the  War  of  1812, 
and  with -a  clean  record  as  Governor  of  the  North- 
western Territory',  was  elected  President  of  the 
United  States  in  1840.  His  2ar3er  was  cut  short 
bj'  death  within  one  month  .fler  jib  la  uguration. 
President  Harrison  wv  bcrn  »t  Voi  '■.  'y»nd. 
Hamilton  Co.,  Ohio,  Aug.  "^0,  1853  His  life  up  to 
the  time  of  his  graduation  by  the  Miami  University 
at  Oxford,  Ohio,  was  the  uneventful  one  of  a  coun- 
try lad  of  a  family  of  small  means.  His  father  was 
able  to  give  him  a  good  education,  and  notbiog 
more.  He  becamt  engaged  while  at  college  to  th3 
daughter  of  Dr.  Scott,  Princi|»;d  of  a  female  schoo 
at  Oxford.  After  graduating  he  determined  to  en- 
ter u|x>n  the  study  of  the  law.  He  went  t«}  Cin 
cinnati  and  then  read  law  for  two  years.  At  tht 
expiration  of  that  time  young  Harrison  receiv.  J  tfc 
only  inheritance  of  his  life ;  his  aunt  dying  left  bin; 
a  lot  valued  at  |800.  He  rcgartlcd  this  legacy  aa  k 
fortune,  and  decided  to  get  married  at  once,  tjika 
this  money  and  go  to  some  Kaslern  town  an  .  oe- 
giii  the  practice  of  law  He  sold  his  lot,  and  with 
the  m<jiicy  in  his  pocket,  he  started  out  witn  his 
yuung  irifc  to  fight  for  a  place-  iu   Uiv  wurld      He 


108 


BENJAMIN  HAREISOTft 


decided  to  go  to  Indianapolis,  which  was  even  at 
that  time  a  town  of  promise.  He  met  witli  sliglit 
eueouragemeut  at  first,  making  scarcely  anything 
the  first  year.  He  worlsed  diligently,  applj-ing  laim- 
self  closely  to  his  calling,  built  up  an  extensive 
practice  and  took  a  leading  rank  in  the  legal  pro- 
fession.    He  is  the  father  of  two  children. 

In  18GG  Mr.  Harrison  was  nominated  for  the 
position  of  Supreme  Court  Eeporter,  and  then  be- 
gari  his  experience  as  a  stump  speakei  lie  can- 
vassed the  State  thoroughly,  and  was  elected  by  a 
handsome  majority.  In  1862  he  raised  the  17th 
Indiana  Infantry,  and  was  chosen  its  Colonel.  His 
regiment  was  composed  of  the  rawest  of  material, 
Dut  Col.  Harrison  employed  all  his  time  at  first 
mastering  military  tactics  and  drilling  his  men, 
when  he  therefore  came  to  move  toward  the  East 
with  Sherman  his  regiment  was  one  of  the  best 
drilled  and  organized  in  the  army.  At  Resaca  he 
especially  distinguished  himself,  and  for  his  bravery 
at  Peachtree  Creek  he  was  made  a  Brigadier  Gen- 
eral, Gen.  Hooker  speaking  of  him  in  the  most 
•ioraplimentary  terms. 

During  the  absence  of  Gen.  Hai'rison  in  the  field 
the  Supreme  Conrt  declared  the  office  of  the  Su- 
preme Court  Reporter  vacant,  and  another  person 
was  elected  to  the  position.  From  the  time  of  leav- 
ing Indiana  with  his  regiment  until  the  f.all  oi  1864 
he  had  taken  no  leave  of  absence,  but  having  been 
nominated  that  year  for  the  same  office,  he  got  a 
thirty-day  leave  of  absence,  and  during  that  time 
niade  a  brilliant  canvass  of  the  State,  and  was  elected 
for  another  term.  He  then  started  to  rejoin  Sher- 
jnan,  but  on  the  way  was  stricken  down  with  scarlet 
iever,  and  after  a  most  trying  siege  made  his  way 
to  the  front  in  time  to  participate  hi  the  closing 
incidents  of  the  war. 

In  1868  Gen.  Harrison  declined  "^  re-election  as 
reporter,  and  resumed  the  practice  of  law,  In  1876 
fie  was  a  candidate  for  Governor,  Although  de- 
feated, the  brilliant  campaign  ht,  made  won  lor  him 
a,  National  reputation,  and  he  was  much  sought,  es- 
peciaLy  in  the  East,  to  make  speeches.  In  1880, 
ds  usual,  he  took  an  active  par*-,  in  the  campaign, 
and  WW.  elected  to  the  Upited  States  Senate.  Here 
uc  set-ved  six  years,  and  ^as  known  as  one  oi  the 
tblest  men,  best  lawyer'  aud  strongest  debaters  in 


that  body.  With  the  expiration  of  his  Scnaloriai 
term  he  returned  to  the  practice  of  his  profession, 
becoming  the  head  of  one  of  the  strongest  firnrvs  in 
the  State. 

The  political  campaign  of  1868  was  one  of  the 
most  memorable  in  the  history  of  our  country.  The 
convention  which  assembled  in  Chicago  in  June  ana 
named  Mr.  Harrison  as  the  chief  standard  bearer 
of  the  Republican  party,  was  great  in  every  partic- 
ular, and  on  this  account,  and  the  attitude  it  as- 
sumed upon  the  vital  questions  of  the  day,  chief 
among  which  was  the  tariff,  awoke  a  deep  interest 
in  the  campaign  throughout  the  Nation.  Shortly 
after  the  nomination  delegations  began  to  visit  Mr. 
Harrison  at  Indianapolis,  his  home.  This  move- 
ment became  popular,  and  from  all  sections  of  the 
country  societies,  clubs  and  delegations  journeyed 
thither  to  pay  their  respects  to  the  distinguished 
statesman.  The  popularity  of  these  was  greatly 
increased  on  account  of  the  remarkable  speeches 
made  by  Mr.  Harrison.  He  spoke  dail}'  all  through 
tlie  summer  and  autumn  to  these  visiting  delega- 
tions, and  so  varied,  masterly  and  eloquent  Vere 
his  speeches  that  they  at  once  placed  him  in  the 
foremost  rank  of  American  orators  and  statesmen. 

On  account  of  his  eloquence  as  a  speaker  and  hi? 
power  as  a  debater,  he  was  called  upon  at  an  un- 
commonly early  age  to  take  part  in  the  discussion 
of  the  great  questions  that  then  began  tj  agitate 
the  country.  He  was  an  uncompromising  anti 
slavery  man,  and  was  nifttched  against  some  of  ti.e 
most  eminent  Deni(>cratic  speakers  of  his  StaCv, 
No  man  who  felt  the  touch  of  his  blade  der'red  11 
be  pitted  with  him  again.  "With  all  his  e^oq-'ence 
as  an  orator  he  never  spoke  for  oratorical  etfect, 
but  liis  words  always  went  like  bullets  to  the  mark 
He  is  purely  American  in  his  ideas  and  is  a  splec 
did  type  of  the  American  statesman.  Gifted  witli 
quick  perception,  a  logical  mind  and  a  ready  tongue, 
he  is  one  of  the  most  distinguished  impromptu 
speakers  in  the  Nation.  Many  of  these  speeches 
sparkled  with  the  rarest  of  eloquence  and  contained 
arguments  of  greatest  weight.  Many  of  his  terse 
statements  have  alreadj-  become  aphorisms.  Origi- 
nal in  thought  precise  ia  logic,  terse  in  statement, 
yet  withal  faultless  in  eloquence,  he  is  recognized  as 
the  sound  statesman  and  bril!  Lan    orator  c    in^  day 


"omi^oj^. 


i)rPA(;i-:  AM)  COOK  ( oi'x  rii:s, 


ILLINOIS. 


Introductory. 


HE  time  has  arrived  when  it  becomes  the 
luty  of  the  iHX)ple  of  this  county  to  peqxjt- 
uate  the  names  of  their  pioneers,  to  furnish 
a  record  of  their  early  settlement,  ana  relate  the 
stor>-  of  their  progress.  The ci\ilization  of  our 
day,  the  enlightenment  of  the  age.  and  the  duty 
that  men  of  the  present  time  owe  to  their  ances 
tors,  to  themselves  and  to  their  posterity,  demand 
that  a  record  of  their  lives  and  deeds  should  be 
made.  In  biographical  historj-  is  found  a  jxjwer 
to  instruct  man  by  precedent,  to  enliven  the  mental 
faculties,  and  to  waft  down  the  river  of  time  a  safe 
vessel,  in  which  the  names  and  actions  of  the  peo- 
ple who  contributed  to  raise  this  countr>  from  its 
primitive  state  ma>-  be  preser\ed.  Surely  and 
rapidly  the  great  and  aged  men.  who  in  their  prime 
entered  the  wilderness  and  claimed  the  virgin  soil 
as  their  heritage,  are  passiug  to  their  graves.  The 
number  remaining  who  can  relate  the  incidents  of 
the  first  days  of  settlement  is  becoming  small  in- 
deed, so  that  an  actual  necessity  exists  for  the  col- 
lection and  preser\ation  of  e\ ents  without  delay, 
before  all  the  early  settlers  are  cut  down  by  the 
scythe  of  Time. 

To  be  forgotten  has  oeen  the  great  dread  of 
mankind  from  remotest  ages.  All  will  be  forgot- 
ten soon  enough,  in  spite  of  their  best  works  and 
the  most  earnest  efforts  of  their  friends  to  preserve 
the  raemor>-  of  their  lives.  The  means  employed 
to  prevent  oblivion  and  to  jx-rpetuate  their  mem- 
ory has  l>een  in  proportion  to  the  amount  of  intel- 
ligence they  posses.sed.  The  p\  ramids  of  Eg>-pt 
were  built  to  perpetuate  the  names  and  deeds  of 
their  great  rulers.  The  exhumations  made  by  the 
archaeologists  of  Egypt  from  buried  Memphis  indi- 
cate a  desire  of  those  j)eople  to  perpetuate  the 
memor\-  of  their  achievements.  The  erection  of 
the  great  olx:li.sks  were  for  the  same  purpose. 
Coming  down  to  a  later  perioil,  we  find  the  Greeks 
and   Romans  erecting  mausolenms  and   monu- 


ments, and  carving  out  statues  to  chronicle  their 
great  achievements  and  carrj-  them  down  the  ages. 
It  is  also  evident  that  the  Mound-builders,  in  pil- 
ing up  tlieir  great  mounds  <»f  earth,  had  but  this 
idea — to  leave  .something  to  show  that  the>-  hail 
lived.  All  these  works,  though  many  of  them 
costly  in  the  extreme,  give  but  a  faint  idea  of  the 
lives  and  characters  of  those  whose  memory  they 
were  intended  to  perpetuate,  and  scarceK-  anything 
of  the  inas.ses  of  the  people  that  then  lived.  The 
great  pyramids  and  .some  of  the  obelisks  remain 
objects  only  of  curiosity:  the  mausoleums,  monu- 
ments and  statues  are  crumbling  into  dust. 

'  It  was  left  to  modem  ages  to  establish  an  intel- 
ligent, undecaying,  immutable  method  of  perpet- 
uating a  full  hi.stor\- — immutable,  in  that  it  is  al- 
most unlimited  in  extent  and  peqietual  in  its  ac- 
tion: and  this  is  through  the  art  of  printing. 

To  the  present  generation,  however,  we  are  in- 
debted for  the  introduction  of  the  admirable  sys- 
tem of  local  biography.  By  this  system  ever>- 
man,  though  he  has  not  achievetl  what  the  world 
calls  greatness,  has  the  means  to  jK-rpetuate  his 
life,  his  historj-,  through  the  coming  ages. 

The  scythe  of  Time  cuts  down  all:  nothing  of 
the  physical  man  is  left.  The  monument  which 
his  children  or  friends  may  erect  to  his  niemor>-  in 
the  cemeter>-  will  crumble  into  dust  and  pass 
awav:  but  his  life,  his  achievements,  the  work  he 
has  accomplished,  which  otherwise  would  be  f<jr- 
gotten,  is  peqietuatetl  by  a  record  of  this  kind. 

To  preser\e  the  lineaments  of  our  companions 
we  engrave  their  portraits:  for  the  same  reason 
we  collect  the  attainable  facts  of  their  history.  Xor 
do  we  think  it  neces.sar>-,  as  we  speak  only  truth 
of  tliein,  to  wait  until  they  are  dead,  or  until  those 
who  know  them  are  gone;  to  do  this  we  are 
ashamed  only  to  publish  to  the  world  the  histor>- 
of  those  whose  lives  are  unworthy  of  public  record. 


■s-it^ 


^y'^^L.^^^^ 


Jz>I(^nRAPIIICAL. 


(I  ESSE  C.  WHEATON.  in  honor  of  whom  the 

I  city  of  Wheaton  is  named,  has  been  connected 
(2/  with  every  leading  enteq>risc  of  the  place 
and  with  nnich  of  the  upbuilding  of  Dul'agc 
County.  He  was  prominent  in  forwarding  and 
encouraging  the  first  railroad  put  through  the 
county,  and  was  influential  in  the  establishment 
of  tliat  ju.stly  famed  institution  of  learning — 
Wheaton  College. 

The  ancestors  of  our  subject  were  worthy  citi- 
zens and  patriots.  His  grandfather,  James  Whea- 
ton, fought  for  American  independence  during 
the  Revolutionar>  War.  His  father  was  a  sol- 
dier in  the  War  of  1812.  The  Wheaton  family 
was  originally  from  Ireland,  and  our  subject's 
great-grandfather  was  born  in  that  ctmntry.  The 
grandfather  was  a  carpenter  by  trade,  was  married 
iu. Rhode  Island  and  .settled  in  Connecticut,  where 
he  died  at  the  age  of  eighty-nine  years. 

The  parents  of  Mr.  Wheaton  were  James  and 
Nancy  (Lyon)  Wheaton.  They  were  married  in 
Woodstock,  Conn.,  and  to  them  were  born  two 
children,  Warren  and  Je.sse.  The  former  also 
resides  in  Wheaton,  has  been  honored  by  being 
sent  to  the  lA-gislature,  and  is  now  eighty-two 
years  of  age.  The  father  was  a  farmer  by  occu- 
pation, and  owne<l  a  valuable  place  of  three  hun- 
dred acres  near  I'onifret,  Conn.  The  mother  died 
when  only  twenty-nine  years  of  age,  our  subject 
being  but  four  years  old  at  the  time.  The  father 
pa.ssed  away  when  in  his  eighty-eighth  year. 

Jes.se  C.  Wheaton  was  born  on  the  27th  of 
March,  1813,  at  Pomfret,  Conn.,  fifty-nine  miles 
from  Boston,  forty  miles  from  Hartford  antl  thirty 
miles  di.stant  from  Providence  and  Worcester. 
He  grew  up  on  a  farm  with  common-school  ad- 
vantages, and  ser\'ed  a  fciur-years  apprenticeship 
at  the  carpenter  and  joiner's  trade,  receiving  $5 
per  month  and  Iward.     On  the  completion  of  this 


tenu  he  went  to  Worcester,  Mass.,  and  worked 
as  a  jounieyman.  Helieving  that  the  West  was 
a  land  of  greater  promise  for  an  ambitious  young 
man,  he  decided  to  seek  a  home  in  that  then  far-off 
land.  Leaving  Worcester,  he  went  by  stage  to 
Norwich,  from  there  to  New  London  and  New 
York,  thence  up  the  river  to  Alljany,  and  by  canal 
from  there  to  BuflTalo,  N.  Y.  He  then  embarked 
on  a  sailing-vessel  bound  for  Mackinaw  through 
the  Great  Lakes.  The  vessel  was  at  the  mercy  of 
the  waves  for  quite  a  di.stance  on  Lake  Huron,  on 
account  of  the  breaking  of  the  main-mast.  About 
thirty  days  were  .spent  upon  this  journey,  which 
can  now  be  made  in  alxjut  as  many  hours.  He 
arrive<l  in  Chicago  June  30,  1837.  when  the  popu- 
lation was  not  over  three  thousand,  and  much  of 
that  was  termed  "floating." 

Mr.  Wheaton  settled  in  Warrenville,  DuPage 
Counts ,  where  he  went  to  work  at  his  trade. 
He  married  Miss  Orinda,  daughter  of  William 
and  Lucy  (Perin)  Gan,-,  the  ceremony  being 
celebrated  March  6,  1839.  The  Gary  family  was 
also  from  Pomfret,  Coim.,  and  they  had  taken  up 
land  in  Warrenville  in  1832.  The  I'nited  States 
Sur\cy  had  not  yet  l>een  made  at  the  time  of  our 
subject's  marriage,  and  he  took  a  pre-emption 
claim  of  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  stMith  of 
Wheaton.  He  had  only  S300  to  invest,  but  pros- 
j)ere<l  well  from  the  first.  He  raise<l  wheat  and 
to)k  it  to  Chicago  with  oxen,  and  .sold  it  for 
thirty-three  cents  jK-r  bushel,  when  "three  pecks 
of  potattKfS  would  glut  the  Chicago  market. ' '  The 
first  crop  he  raised  .vas  0.1  unfenced  land,  and  he 
had  genuine  pioneer  exi)eriences.  For  a  numlx.T 
of  years  he  worked  at  his  trade  and  at  fanning, 
and  iK-came  the  owner  of  s«Mne  three  hundritl 
acres.  His  brother  owned  eight  hundred  acres 
east  of  his  fann,  and  thus  their  land  had  a  stretch 
of  aljout  three  miles  east  and  west. 


ii6 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


Perhaps  no  one  iii  Du  Page  County  did  more 
for  the  first  railroad,  the  Galena  &  Chicago  Un- 
ion (now  the  Galena  Division  of  the  Chicago  & 
Northwestern )  than  the  Wheaton  brothers.  John 
B.  Turner  was  then  President  of  that  road,  and 
John  Van  Ortwick  was  the  Chief  Engineer,  and 
both  of  these  gentlemen  were  intimate  friends  of 
our  subject.  The  latter,  in  company  with  his 
brother,  gave  three  miles  of  the  right  of  way,  and 
it  was  for  this  liberal  gift  that  the  President  named- 
the  station  which  he  located  on  this  land  in  honor 
of  our  subject.  The  two  brothers  also  subscribed 
$300  apiece,  besides  donating  forty  acres  of  land 
on  which  Wheaton  College  is  located,  and  our 
subject  was  Trustee  of  the  college  for  ten  years. 
He  has  always  taken  an  active  interest  in  the 
public  schools,  and  for  nineteen  years  has  been  a 
member  of  the  Board  of  Education,  and  is  now 
its  President.  He  was  one  of  the  promoters  of 
the  "Elephant  School  Hou.se."  so  styled  by  those 
who  thought  it  too  large  to  be  filled  for  the  next 
fifty  years.  They  have  been  mistaken,  for  the 
school  is  now  so  well  filled  that  it  is,  in  fact, 
crowded,  and  it  will  .soon  be  necessary  to  erect 
another  building.  Wheaton  has  the  best  public 
High  School  in  the  county,  and  pupils  graduating 
from  it  may  enter  Wheaton  College  or  an\-  other 
first-class  academy  without  further  examination, 
as  it  is  placed  on  the  accredited  list. 

Mrs.  Wheaton  died  on  the  4th  of  April,  1882, 
leaving  nine  children.  Lora  A.  married  John 
Stipsou.  She  is  a  graduate  of  the  Wheaton 
College  classical  course,  and  for  many  years 
has  taught  languages.  Among  the  colleges  in 
which  she  has  taught  are  Heading  College,  at  Ab- 
ingdon, 111.,  and  Rock  River  Seminars-.  For  the 
pa.st  fifteen  years  she  has  been  teacher  of  Latin  in 
the  Chicago  North  Division  High  School.  She 
was  fi\-e  years  in  Abingdon  and  three  years  in 
Rock  River.  Maria  N.,  wife  of  R.  A.  Morrison, 
of  Grant  Park,  111.,  died,  leaving  three  children, 
Frankie,  Willie  and  Mamie,  who  reside  with  our 
subject.  Jesse  C.  is  Street  Superintendent  of 
Wheaton.  Ellen  F.  died  at  the  age  of  nine  years. 
Mary  E.,  deceased,  was  the  wife  of  Henn,- Hewes, 
of  Crete,  Will  County,  111.  She  died  in  1890, 
leaving  no  children.     James  M.   was  graduated 


from  livanston  University,  and  is  now  the  Meth- 
odist Episcopal  minister  of  St.  Charles,  111.  Frank- 
lin Enier>-  runs  the  Wheaton  farm  and  is  engaged 
in  raising  Norman  horses.  Washington  Irving 
is  a  graduate  of  Wheaton  College  and  is  also  a 
noted  horse-breeder  and  fanner  on  a  part  of  the 
Wheaton  farm.  Frankie  E.  is  the  wife  of  J.  F. 
Snyder,  lawyer  and  City  Attorney  of  this  vil- 
lage. 

In  1S79  the  Wheaton  Bank,  known  astheGarj- 
Wheaton  Bank,  was  e.stablished  for  the  purpose 
of  aiding  enterpri-ses  in  this  place.  Our  .subject 
is  one  of  the  proprietors,  and  the  bank  has  be- 
come a  good  paj'ing  institution,  which  is  on  a 
perfectly  sound  basis.  He  was  in  the  original 
plat  of  Wheaton,  and  has  laid  out  the  first  and 
second  additions  to  the  same.  As  it  is  the  geo- 
graphical center  of  the  county,  it  was  but  natural 
that  our  subject  should  use  his  best  energies  in 
having  the  county  seat  removed  from  Naperville 
to  this  place,  and  he  has  always  proved  a  stanch 
friend  to  her  interests. 

In  his  religious  views,  Mr.  Wheaton  is  a  Meth- 
odist, and  helped  to  organize  the  church  here  in 
1849.  The  present  building  was  dedicated  in 
1857,  and  it  is  needless  to  say  that  he  has  as- 
sisted materially  in  its  maintenance.  He  says, 
"Mv  first  donation  to  the  church  was  $400.  I 
did  not  know  where  the  monej'  was  to  come  from, 
but  it  came."  For  more  than  twenty  successive 
years  he  has  been  one  of  its  Trustees.  He  is  a 
loyal  Republican,  and  for  many  years  has  been 
As.se.ssor  and  Collector  of  Milton  Township.  From 
1862  until  1868,  he  was  Deputy  As.se.ssor  of  In- 
ternal Revenue  of  Du  Page  County. 


"S] 


$+^ 


(^_ 


IS" 


[Francis  McCABE  is  a  well-known  farmer 
rft  of  Wayr.e  Township,  who  owns  and  operates 
I  ^  one  hundred  and  twent},--two  acres  of  rich 
and  valuable  land  on  sections  35  and  36.  The 
record  of  his  life  is  as  follows:  He  was  born  on 
the  farm  which  is  .still  his  home,  on  the  1 6th  of 
September.  1845,  and  comes  of  one  of  the  pioneer 
families  of  the  countv-.      His    father,    James    Mc 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RIXORD. 


Cabe.  was  a  native  uf  Ireland.  aiiU  in  that  land 
grew  to  manluKxl.  Having  n-xilvtrtl  to  ^etrk  a 
home  and  fortune  in  the  New  World,  he  emi- 
grated to  New  York  alxmt  1839,  and  thence  came 
to  Illinois,  casting  in  hi>  lot  ami>ng  the  early  set- 
tlers of  I  Hi  Page  County.  Here  he  enlcreil  a  half- 
section  of  land  fn>ni  the  Government,  and.  locating 
thereon,  liegan  plowing  and  planting.  Soon  he 
had  a  good  farm,  which,  in  its  condition  of  fertility, 
bore  little  rcscniblance  to  the  barren  tract  which 
he  oblaine*!.  Throughout  the  remainder  of  his 
life  he  there  carried  on  fanning,  and  in  1.S71  passed 
to  the  home  beyond.  His  wife  survived  him  for 
a  few  years,  and  was  called  to  her  final  rest  July  i . 
1877.  They  both  lie  buried  in  Turner  Cemetery, 
where  a  marble  moimment  has  been  erected  to 
their  nieniory. 

In  their  family  of  four  sons  and  three  daughters, 
Frank  McCabe  is  the  fifth  in  order  of  birth. 
Three  brothers  and  one  sister  are  still  living. 
Frank  spent  his  youth  upon  tlie  old  homestead 
farm,  and  obtained  a  good  practical  education  in 
the  district  schools.  To  his  father  he  ga\'e  the 
benefit  of  his  services  until  hLs  death,  and  then 
succeeded  to  a  part  of  the  old  homestead,  which 
he  has  succes.sfully  engaged  in  operating.  His 
entire  life  hxs  \mxi\  spent  as  a  farmer,  and  the 
thoroughness  of  his  work,  his  diligence  and  good 
business  ability,  have  made  his  career  a  prosperous 
one. 

On  the  8th  of  October,  1878.  in  this  county. 
Mr.  McCal>e  was  united  in  marriage  with  Kninia 
Jorgens,  a  daughter  of  Peter  Jorgens.  who  1  )cated 
in  this  county  in  i860,  coming  here  from  Chicago. 
The  daughter  was  there  Ijoni  and  reared.  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  McCabe  now  have  five  children:  James 
Edward,  William  Francis,  Albert  Bernard,  Peter 
Charles  and  Hmma  Frances. 

On  all  questions  of  national  imf>ortance.  Mr. 
McCabe  supports  the  Democratic  party,  but  in  1  • 
cal  elections  he  supports  the  man  whom  bethinks 
be«ft  qualified  tg  fill  the  office,  regardless  of  part\ 
affiliations.  He  was  reared  in  the  Catholic  Church, 
and  still  adheres  to  the  faith.  His  wife  is  a  niei: 
ber  of  the  Gennan  Lutheran  Church.  Mr.  M 
Cabe  belongs  to  the  Fore^ers'  lodge  of  Winfield. 
He  has  lived  a  quiet,  unassuming  life,  but.  Uiough 


he  has  .not  been  prominent  in  public  affairs.    In- 
honorable.    upri>;hl    t-arivr    li;t- 
wanu  regard  of  all  with  whom   •   _ 
relations  have  brought  him  in  onitact. 


30HN  AKNDT,  who  resides  in  Wayiu  . 
numberetl  among  the  early  settlers  of  the 
county,  dating  his  residence  here  from  1^  ■ 
In  the  long  years  that  have  oinie  and  gone  --i:.i.i. 
that  time,  he  has  seen  nuich  of  the  gnmth  and 
development  of  the  a>utit>  .  an<l  has  ever  Ixime 
his  part  in  its  upbuilding  and  advancement.  He 
is  therefore  numl>ere<l  among  its  best  citizeiLs,  and 
deserves  representation  in  this  volume. 

Mr.  Anidt  is  a  native  of  Germany.  He  was 
bom  in  Posen.  February  8,  i8_^2.  and  there  re- 
mained until  twenty  years  of  age,  acquiring  a 
good  education  in  the  German  and  PoILsh  lan- 
guages. When  a  young  man,  he  determined  to 
try  his  fortune  in  the  New  World,  and  in  1852 
took  passage  on  a  vessel  at  Hamburg,  going  by- 
way of  Liverpool  to  New  York.  There  were  five 
hundre<l  pas.sengers  oi>  U>ard  the  ves.sel.  anil  the 
cholera  broke  out  among  them.  One  hundred 
and  fifteen  persons  die<l  and  were  buried  at  sea. 
On  the  30th  of  .Scptemljer.  iH>,2.  Mr.  Anidt  landed 
in  New  York,  ami  went  to  Newark.  N.  J.  He 
afterward  workeil  for  Thomas  Pearson,  of  New- 
ark. N.  J.,  at  wagon-making,  and  there  contiiuietl 
until  1835,  when  he  again  starte<l  westward,  and 
in  the  month  of  AugiLst  reache-.l  Chicag«).  From 
that  jx»inl  he  traveled  through  the  surrounding 
cnintry,  and  on  the  ud  «)f  Octoljer  reached 
Wa>ne.  Being  pleased  with  the  situation,  a 
week  later  we  find  him  in.stalletl  in  this  plaiv. 
which  has  since  been  his  home.  He  first  workeil 
at  his  trade  for  H.  S.  Owen,  but  after  a  .short 
time  he  lniujjht  out  his  eniplover,  and  ha*  - 
been  activel\  engage<l  in  the  manufacture  ai. 
pair  of  wagons  and  carriages.  He  has  built  up  a 
•  •ss.  which  has  steadily  in 
^  lining. 
On  the  1 3th  of  Septenil>er.  1856.  iu  this  county. 
Mr    Anidt   was  unitnl  in    nuirriage  with    Kllen 


Ii8 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


Plum,  a  native  of  Canada,  whose  parents  were 
natives  of  Vermont.  They  have  a  daughter, 
Emma  E.  Their  home  is  a  pleasant  residence, 
and  in  addition  to  this  Mr.  Arndt  owns  three 
business  houses  in  Wayne.  He  is  one  of  the 
prominent  and  active  members  of  the  Congrega- 
tional Church,  which  he  was  instrumental  in  es- 
tablisliing,  and  has  given  liberally  of  his  time 
and  means  to  its  support,  doing  all  in  his  power 
for  its  advancement. 

In  politics,  Mr.  Arndt  is  a  Democrat.  He  cast 
his  first  Presidential  vote  for  John  C.  Fremont  in 
1856;  afterward  supported  George  B.  McClellan, 
and  has  since  affiliated  with  the  Democracy.  He 
has  been  honored  with  a  number  of  official  posi- 
tions— served  for  four  years  as  Postmaster  under 
Cleveland's  administration;  held  the  office  of 
Highway  Commissioner  for  twelve  consecutive 
years;  for  the  same  length  of  time  was  Town- 
ship Treasurer,  and  was  a  member  of  the  Drain- 
age Board.  His  official  duties  have  ever  been 
discharged  in  a  prompt  and  able  manner,  and  his 
fidelity  and  trustworthiness  have  won  him  the 
connnendation  of  all  concerned.  In  connection 
with  his  other  interests,  he  is  engaged  in  hand- 
ling hard  and  soft  coal,  sewer  pipe  and  drain  tile, 
and  has  a  good  trade  along  this  line.  He  is  num- 
bered among  the  honored  early  settlers  of  the 
county,  and  is  a  man  of  integrity  and  upright 
character,  who  well  deserves  the  confidence  and 
regard  in  which  he  is  held. 


-^]. 


l€+^i 


q)EORGE  F.  DEIBERT,  a  retired  merchant, 
_  now  living  in  Bloomingdale,  has  for  almost 
^  half  a  century  made  his  home  in  DuPage 
County,  and  is  numbered  among  the  honored 
pioneers  who  have  been  the  founders  of  the  coun- 
ty, and  have  been  the  leading  factors  in  its 
growth  and  upbuilding.  As  he  is  widely  and 
favorably  known  in  this  community,  we  feel  as- 
sured that  this  record  of  his  life  will  prove  of  in- 
terest to  many  of  our  readers. 

A   native   of  Pennsylvania,    Mr.    Deibert  was 
born  in  Schuylkill  County,  January  4,  1S21,   and 


is  a  son  of  George  Deibert,  who  was  born  in  the 
same  county.  His  grandfather,  Michael  Deibert, 
was  a  soldier  of  the  Revolution.  The  mother  of 
our  .subject,  who  bore  the  maiden  name  of  Mar)- 
Faust,  was  al.so  born  in  the  Key.stone  State.  The 
father  died  when  George  F.  was  a  lad  of  only 
four  years,  leaving  a  widow  with  ten  children. 

Our  subject  was  then  bound  out  to  an  uncle, 
with  whom  he  remained  until  sixteen  }ears  of 
age,  when  he  went  to  his  own  home,  and  lived 
with  his  mother  until  he  had  attained  his  majority. 
In  early  life  he  was  inured  to  arduous  toil,  the 
privileges  and  advantages  of  his  youth  being  very- 
meagre.  When  he  had  attained  to  man's  estate, 
he  began  working  as  a  farm  hand  in  his  own  in- 
terest, and  from  sunrise  until  dark  labored  in  the 
fields,  receiving  for  his  sers-ices  only  $80  per 
year.  He  was  thus  employed  for  three  years  and 
was  then  married.  It  was  in  August,  1844,  in 
vSchuylkill  County,  that  he  was  joined  in  wed- 
lock with  Mi.ss  Susanna  Dewald,  a  native  of  that 
county.  The  following  month  they  came  to  the 
We.st,  and  made  a  location  in  DuPage  Count\-. 
In  1843,  Mr.  Deibert  had  visited  Illinois,  and  had 
determined  to  locate  here.  His  first  wife  only 
lived  about  four  years,  and  in  Naperville,  in  1852, 
he  was  again  married,  his  .second  union  being 
with  Sarah  Dewald,  a  sister  of  his  former  wife. 
Four  children  were  born  unto  them:  Milton  G., 
now  a  merchant  of  Elgin,  111.;  Ida  M.,  wife  of 
S.  E.  Kinney,  of  Spokane,  Wash.;  Mar\-,  wife 
of  George  W.  Schnider  of  Denver,  Colo.,  who 
died  in  January-,  1893,  leaving  two  children;  and 
Lulu,  who  died  in  early  childhood. 

On  coming  to  Illinois  in  1844,  Mr.  Deibert  lo- 
cated in  Naper\-ille,  and  served  as  Constable  and 
Deputy  Sheriff  for  several  years.  In  185Q,  he 
made  an  overland  trip  to  California  with  a  party 
which  had  seven  teams.  They  left  Napen-ille  on 
the  15th  of  April,  and  on  the  4th  of  July  reached 
their  destination.  There  Mr.  Deibert  engaged  in 
mining,  which  he  continued  for  two  \-ears  with 
fair  .success.  He  returned  b>-  way  of  the  Nica- 
ragua route  to  New  York,  and  on  the  trip  visit- 
ed his  old  home  in  Pennsylvania.  At  length  he 
arrived  in  Naperville,  in  the  spring  of  1852.  Two 
vears  later  he  bought  an   interest  in  a  store  with 


I'DRTRAIT  AM)   llKKiKArillCAL    KI'XORD. 


no 


his  brother,  1).  !•"..  Dcilx-rl,  and,  rcinoviiij;  l<i 
Bloomiiigdale.  hen*  carried  on  general  merchan- 
dising until  1SS5.  The  i)arlnersliip  continued 
for  ten  years,  and  he  was  then  alone  in  business 
until  his  retirement  in  the  year  alK)ve  mentioned. 
In  his  early  life  our  subject  was  a  supixtrter  of 
the  Deniooracy.  but  on  the  organizaticni  of  the 
Republican  party,  in  1S56,  he  joine<l  its  ranks  and 
has  sim-e  lK.vn  one  of  its  .stanch  supjxirters  on  all 
«luestions  of  State  and  national  imiK)rtance.  In 
IfK-al  elections  he  supjxirts  the  man  whcjin  he 
thinks  l>est  qualified  for  the  office,  regardless  of 
party  affiliations.  Mr.  Deibert  has  Ixren  electetl 
to  a  numljer  of  local  pi)sitions  of  honor  and  tntst, 
has  served  as  Constable  and  Collector,  and  is  now 
SchiKil  Trustee.  His  residence  in  this  county 
covers  a  i>eri»xl  of  nearly  fifty  years,  and  he  has 
not  only  witnes.sed  its  growth  and  development, 
but  has  also  Ixirne  an  active  part  in  its  progress 
and  advancement.  His  life  has  been  well  and 
worthily  pa.s.sed,  his  business  career  has  Ikx-u  a 
successful  one,  and  he  is  now  a  substantial  and 
highly  resjK-ctcd  citi/en. 


-s] 


H-^-f 


N'  iN.  WAkKHX  L.  WHKATON  is  one  of 
the  honoretl  pioneers  of  Dul'age  County,  in 
ihe  welfare  of  which  he  has  lx.-en  a  prominent 
factor  from  ver>-  early  days.  Though  now  nearl>- 
eighty-two  years  of  age,  he  is  bright  and  active, 
both  in  mind  and  IkkIn-.  An  evidence  of  the  lat- 
ter fact  is  shown  by  his  l)eing  still  engaged  iji 
fanning  on  the  school  section  of  Milton  Township. 
This  is  the  .same  piece  of  ground  that  he  l<M)k  uj) 
from  the  Government  in  iH^H,  his  claim  to  the 
land  iK-ing  made  l)y  plowing  around  it.  as  that 
was  Ixifore  the  surveyors  had  laid  out  the  county. 
In  the  early  days  he  was  active  in  a.s.sisting  the 
first  railroad  laid  in  the  c<iunt\ ,  atid  hcljicd  to 
found  Wheaton  College.  He  represented  tin.- ]jeo- 
ple  of  this  iiection  in  the  Legislature  of  Illinois, 
and  has  always  been  greatly  respected  by  all. 

It  is  seldom  now  that  a  man  bom  in  the  mem- 
orable year  of  1.S12,  and  whose  eyes  have  beheld 
the  natural  fauna  of  this  great  Prairie  State,  and 


have  witnes.sc<l  its  progression  during  the  past 
years,  is  so  active  and  retains  so  good  a  memory- 
of  those  pioneer  days.  The  birth  of  our  subject 
occurre<l  March  (\  iSi2,  in  Fomfret,  Windham 
Comity,  Conn.  His  parents  were  James  and 
Nancy  (  Lyon  1  Wheaton.  He  is  the  elder  of  their 
two  s»")ns.  the  ymniger  l>eing  Jes.se  C,  a  sketch  of 
whom  apiK-ars  elsewhere  in  this  work.  They 
share  the  honor  of  founding  the  l>eautiful  city  of 
Wheaton.  Warren  L.  recxriveil  his  etluc-ation  in 
the  schools  of  his  native  place  and  at  the  Wood- 
stock Academy,  where  he  was  a  student  for  a  year 
and  a-liair  When  alniut  nineteen  years  of  age 
he  Ix-'^an  teaching  school  during  the  winter,  and 
fanning  during  the  summer  season.  His  first 
scIuxjI  was  a  small  one  in  the  backwoods,  but  he 
.so:in  proved  himself  a  good  teacher  and  fine  dis- 
ciplinarian, and  his  services  were  soon  .sought  by 
the  largest  scIi.hjIs  of  that  section. 

It  was  in  1S37  that  Mr.  Wheaton  started  for 
the  West,  going  to  Hartford  by  stage,  thence  by 
water  to  Albany,  and  on  the  only  railroad  then  in 
the  State  to  Schenectady,  thence  by  the  Erie 
Canal  and  the  (Ireaf  Lakes  to  Chicago,  where  he 
arrived  June  i.  He  went  on  foot  to  Gar>-'s  Mill, 
where  he  made  his  headquarters  for  a  time.  The 
Gar.v  family  were  \-er>-  early  settlers  and  had  a 
large  harvest  that  >'ear.  and  for  three  weeks  our 
subject  swung  the  cradle  in  their  wheat  fields. 
After  the  han-est  was  completed  he  went  to 
Chicago,  where  he  bought  a  horse,  saddle  and 
bridle,  and.  thus  e<|uipi>ed.  starte<l  out  to  .see  the 
country.  He  visitetl  Helena  and  Madison.  Wis. ; 
Ottawa,  La  Salle  and  yuincy.  111.:  and  St.  Louis, 
returning  by  way  of  Galena.  His  intention  was 
to  return  to  the  Ivast  that  fall,  but  he  was  tnken 
seriously  ill  with  bilious  fever,  from  which  he  suf- 
fere<l  nearly  all  the  following  winter.  The  next 
year  he  ojx.'nUe<l  a  part  of  Mr.  (far\"s  farm  on 
shares,  and  the  same  year  laid  claim  to  about  six 
hundred  and  forty  acres  by  breaking  a  furrow 
around  it.  That  summer  he  broke  alxnit  eighteen 
acres  of  his  farm  and  sowed  it  with  winter  wheat, 
and  then  returi;e<l  to  the  Ka.st.  The  following 
June  he  came  again  to  I)n  I'ageCount>-.  and  found 
the  wheat  which  he  had  sown  was  luxuriant  and 
promising   a    gfWKl   croj).      Ni>   fence   protected   it 


120 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


from  neighbors'  cattle,  but  the  wheat  was  unmo- 
lested save  where  a  deer  had  now  and  then  wan- 
dered through. 

The  marriage  of  Mr.  Wheaton  with  Miss  Harriet 
E.  Rickert  was  performed  June  25,  1848.  She 
was  also  a  native  of  Pomfret,  Conn.,  and  came  to 
Illinois  with  her  parents  when  a  child  of  but  ten 
years  of  age.  She  was  called  from  this  life  May 
29,  1863.  Other  six  children,  three  are  living: 
Warren  L- ,  who  now  has  the  management  of  the 
farm;  Wilbur  F.,  who  resides  in  Nebraska;  and 
Lucy,  who  is  the  wife  of  Mr.  Darling,  of  Union, 
111.  After  the  death  of  his  first  wife,  Mr.  Wheaton 
married  Miss  Christiana  Shugg,  of  New  York  City. 

It  would  be  safe  to  say  that  no  man  has  been 
more  interested  in  advancing  every  enterprise  for 
the  good  of  Wheaton  and  the  neighborhood  than 
has  Warren  L.  Wheaton.     He  ven-  liberally  gave 
the  Galena  &  Chicago  Union  Railroad  the  right 
of  way  through  his  farm,  and  aided  otherwise  in 
getting  the  road  put  through.     His  ardent  sup- 
port and  generosity  in  this  matter  gained  for  him 
the  warm  friendship  of  Capt.   Turner,  who  was 
the  projector  and  first  President  of  the  road.     He, 
in  turn,  located  a  station  on  our  .subject's  land  and 
named  it  in  honor  of  him  and  his  brother,  who 
was  also  greatly  interested  in  the  project.     When 
the  Wesleyan  Methodists  were  casting  about  for  a 
suitable  location  for  their  seminary,  Mr.  Wheaton 
came  to  the  rescue  and  donated  forty  acres  of  land, 
also  subscribing  $300  to  the  institution.     From 
earliest  childhood  he  has  been  the  true  friend  of 
schools,  religion  and  knowledge,  and  this  tendency 
has  made  him  one  of  the  strong  supporters  of  the 
Wesleyan,    now    Wheaton,  College.       Oftentimes 
he  has  given  to  its  .support  when  it  meant  a  real 
sacrifice.     From  the  time  of  its  foundation  to  the 
present  he  has  been  a  Trustee.     The  same  spirit 
of  liberality  and  interest  has  actuated  him  in  con- 
nection with  the  public  schools  of  Wheaton,  as  for 
years  he  ser\'ed  on  the  Board  of  Education,  and  it 
is  but  fair  to  note  that  one  of  the  best  High  Schools 
in  the  State  is  the  one  here  located. 

In  the  Illinois  Legislature  of  1848  and  1849, 
Mr.  Wheaton  was  a  stanch  supporter  of  every 
measure  pertaining  to  the  true  progress  of  the  com- 
monwealth.    His  work  on  the  Committee  of  Town- 


ship Organization  will  be  placed  to  his  great  credit 
for  years  to  come.  In  1850  he  served  Milton 
Town.ship  in  the  capacity  of  Supervisor.  The 
fact  that  he  has  eclipsed  the  beautiful  biblical  ex- 
ample of  a  man  "three-score  years  and  ten,  and  his 
eyes  not  j-et  dimmed,"  is  partly  to  be  accounted 
for  by  his  having  lived  a  consistent  and  temperate 
life,  and  also  by  his  coming  from  a  .sturdy  stock 
of  long-lived  Puritan  ancestors.  His  grandfather, 
James  Wheaton,  who  lived  at  Providence,  R.  I., 
true  to  the  patriotic  spirit  of  his  day,  offered  his 
.services  in  behalf  of  the  Colonies'  independence. 
He  was  detailed  to  "fire  the  beacons"  at  Provi- 
dence, and  remained  faithful  to  his  post  until  the 
great  strife  was  over.  He  has  been  physically, 
mentally ,  and  in  every  way  an  exceptionallj-  strong 
character,  well  fitted  for  pioneer  life,  and  for  lay- 
ing the  foundations  of  schools  and  city  organiza- 
tions. His  memory  will  live  in  the  annals  of 
Wheaton 's  history  forever  as  one  who,  at  what- 
ever sacrifice  of  personal  comfort  and  wealth, 
founded  her  prosperity. 


e^+^P=^ 


EHARLES  A.  TEDRAHN  is  a  prominent  and 
leading  merchant  of  Cloverdale,  who  in  1889 
began  bu.siness  at  this  place.  He  was  born 
in  Oldenburg,  Germany,  August  24,  1864,  and 
remained  in  the  Fatherland  until  seventeen  years 
of  age,  during  which  time  he  acquired  a  good  ed- 
ucation in  his  native  tongue.  In  1881,  he  bade 
adieu  to  friends  and  native  land,  and,  taking  pas- 
sage on  a  steamer  at  Hamburg,  sailed  for  New 
York.  On  the  ist  of  June  he  landed  on  the 
shores  of  the  New  World  and  went  direct  to 
Chicago,  where  he  soon  secured  work,  there  re- 
maining until  1883.  He  was  employed  as  a  clerk 
in  a  retail  dry-goods  house  and  there  acquired  his 
actual  business  experience.  In  1885,  accompa- 
nied by  his  mother,  he  returned  to  Germany, 
spending  about  a  month  in  vi-siting  the  friends 
and  scenes  of  his  youth. 

On  his  return  he  again  went  to  Chicago  and 
in  that  city  was  married,  June  8,  1886,  Miss 
Emma     Niemier   becoming   his  wife.     She    was 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


131 


bom  in  Illinois,  and  is  of  Gcnnan  nar«rnlaj;i.-  In 
StrptcmlH.-r  of  that  year.  Mr.  Tcdrahn  fniharki-<l 
in  the  hotel  business  in  Chicago,  which  he  carried 
on  until  USK9.  The  previous  year  he  Ixnixht 
property  in  Cloverdale  and  built  a  busine.ss  house 
and  residence  here.  He  was  the  first  man  to  en- 
gage in  merchandising  in  this  place.  In  the 
spring  of  iSSy  he  "oiHrnetl  up  a  stock  of  merchan- 
dise, and  from  the  lieginning  his  trade  has  con- 
stantly increaseil  until  he  is  now  doing  a  fine  bus- 
iness. The  excellent  line  of  gotnls  which  he  car- 
ries, and  his  fair  and  straightfor^\■ard  dealings, 
liave  won  him  an  enviable  reputation. 

I'nto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Teiirahn  have  been  bom 
three  children,  two  sons  and  a  daughter.  Wal- 
ter. Charles  and  Rosa.  The  parents  are  faith- 
ful and  active  memlx.rs  of  the  Lutheran  Church. 
Mr.  Te<lrahn  is  a  Democrat  in  politics,  and  in 
July.  1S.S9.  was  appointed  Postmaster  of  Clover- 
tlale,  which  jxisition  he  has  since  filled.  He 
is  a  man  of  good  business  ability,  sagacious 
and  far-sightc-d.  and  during  his  four-years  resi- 
dence in  this  countv  he  has  betxime  most  widely 
and  favorablv  known. 


=^^"i^l=- 


n<UIN  H.  KOBl'SCH  is  a  weU-known  mer- 
I  liant  and  the  able  Postmaster  of  Blooming- 
Q)  dale.  We  wi.sh  to  add  his  life  record  to  the 
histor>  of  his  adopted  county,  for  he  is  one  of  the 
enterprising  and  progressive  citizens  of  the  com- 
munity in  which  he  now  makes  his  home.  On 
the  14th  of  Dcceml^er.  1S31.  he  was  born  in 
Prxissia,  Germany,  and  there  grew  to  manhood, 
acquiring  a  good  education  in  the  common 
schools.  It  was  in  1X34  that  he  crossed  the  At- 
lantic to  America,  reaching  St.  Louis,  Mo.,  in 
Februan,  <jf  that  year.  He  located  in  that  city, 
where  he  engaged  in  teaming  for  a  nunjt)er  of 
years,  but  in  1861  he  laid  aside  business  cares 
and  enlisted  in  defense  of  the  I'nion  and  the  Old 
Flag. 

Mr.  Kobusch  joined  Company  K-of  the  Fifth 
Re>er\e  Coqjs,  under  Col.  White,  and  reniaine<l 
in  St.  I^uis  doing  guard  duty.      He  engage<l  in 


driving  a  team  for  the  Government  for  f<»ur 
months,  and  after  his  temi  ot  .service  had  expired 
he  resumed  teaming  for  himself  in  the  hunlier- 
yard  where  he  had  previously  l)een  employetl. 
He  then  sold  his  team  and  l)ecame  foreman  of  the 
lumber-yard,  which  jxisition  he  held  for  al>out 
five  years.  On  the  expiration  of  that  period  he 
purcha.sed  a  .stable  and  engage*!  in  the  livery 
buisness  for  two  years,  after  which  he  sold  out. 
He  then  again  entered  a  lumlK-r-yard,  where  he 
spent  a  year  and  a-half,  after  which  he  engaged 
as  foreman  with  the  St.  Louis  sawmills,  holding 
that  responsible  fKJsition  for  twelve  years  and  a- 
half,  when  he  resigned.  Soon  after  he  Ixnight  and 
established  a  mercantile  business  on  Fourteenth 
and  Howard  Streets.  After  two  years,  however, 
he  .sold  out,  came  to  Blooniingdale,  i)urcliased  a 
store  and  put  in  a  .stock  of  gootls.  Here  he  has 
since  actively  engaged  in  merchandising,  and  with 
increa.sed  trade  has  enlarge<l  his  facilities.  He 
now  has  a  fine  stock  of  general  merchandise  and 
from  the  public  he  receives  a  lil>eral  patronage. 
In  1S91  he  admitted  his  son  F.  W.  to  partner- 
ship in  the  business. 

Mr.  Kobusch  was  married  in  St.  Louis,  Octo- 
ber 24,  1858,  to  Christina  Hemnie,  who  die<l  in 
that  city,  March  20,  1884.  They  had  two  chil- 
dren: F.  W.,  above  mentioned;  and  Hennan  H., 
who  i.>«  now  in  Klgin,  111.  Mr.  Kobusch  was 
again  married  in  St.  Louis,  October  24,  1884,  his 
.second  union  being  with  Christina  Brockmann,  a 
native  of  Germany.  They  are  members  of  the 
German  Lutheran  Church. 

In  1886,  Mr.  Kobusch  was  appointed  Post- 
ma.ster  of  Blooniingdale,  and  h.xs  since  efficiently 
discharged  the  duties  of  the  office.  He  cast  his 
first  Presidential  vote  for  Abraham  Lincoln  in 
i860,  and  has  supix)rted  each  Presidential  nomi- 
nee of  the  Republican  party  since  that  time.  He 
was  elected  X'illage  Treasurer  and  has  held  that 
office  for  alxmt  four  years.  He  is  true  to  every 
public  and  private  trust,  and  the  community  has 
found  in  him  a  valued  citizen,  who  is  always 
found  in  the  front  rank  in  public  improvement 
awl  advancement. 

Fretlerick  William  Kobusi-li,  the  junior  meinlK-r 
of  the  firm  of  J.  H.  Kobusi-h  &  Son,  was  l»oni  in 


122 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


St.  Louis,  May  28,  1862,  and  grew  to  niaiiliood  in 
that  city.  His  literary  education  was  acquired  in 
the  public  schools,  and  for  five  years  he  attended 
the  night  sessions  of  Jones'  Commercial  College,  in 
which  he  completed  the  business  course.  For 
three  years  he  worked  at  various  employments, 
and  then,  in  1878,  entered  the  Mallinckrodt 
Chemical  Works,  where  he  was  emplo>-ed  until 
1 89 1,  when  he  came  to  Bloomingdale  and  joined 
his  father  in  business. 

In  St.  Louis,  April  29,  1888,  was  celebrated 
the  marriage  of  F.  W.  Kobusch  and  Miss  M.  E. 
Hallenberg,  a  native  of  that  city.  Three  chil- 
dren grace  this  union:  John  Henry,  Herman 
Henry  and  Frederick  William,  Jr. 

On  all  questions  of  national  importance,  Mr, 
Kobusch  works  with  the  Republican  party,  but  at 
local  elections  casts  his  ballot  for  the  man  best 
qualified  to  fill  the  office,  regardless  of  party 
affiliations.  In  1892,  he  was  appointed  Clerk  of 
Bloomingdale,  and  in  1893  was  elected  to  that 
office.  He  is  a  stock-holder  in  the  Bloomingdale 
Creamerj-  Company,  and  holds  the  office  of 
Secretary  and  Treasurer.  He  is  a  wide-awake  and 
enterprising  business  man,  and  to  the  experience 
and  mature  judgment  of  his  father  he  adds  the 
enterprise  and  activity  of  his  younger  years,  so 
that  the  firm  of  J.  H.  Kobusch  &  vSon  is  one  of 
the  leading  business  houses  of  this  place. 


E^+^l 


1^ 


(I  AMES  CONLEY  is  the  oldest  .settler  of  the 
I  village  of  Turner,  and  this  work  therefore 
C2/  would  be  incomplete  without  a  record  of  his 
life,  for  with  the  upbuilding  and  development  of 
Turner  his  name  is  inseparably  connected.  He 
was  born  in  County  Tipperary,  Ireland,  in  1820, 
and  is  a  son  of  Patrick  and  Nancy  (Dugan)  Con- 
ley,  who  were  also  born  on  the  Green  Isle  of  Erin. 
Their  family  luunbered  eight  children,  four  sons 
and  four  daughters:  Thomas,  James,  Patrick, 
John,  Ellen,  Mar>',  Eliza  and  Margaret.  Thomas, 
James  and  John  are  the  only  ones  now  living. 
The  father  was  a  prominent  farmer  in  his  native 
land.     In  1833,  he  crossed  the  Atlantic  to  Amer- 


ica, and  after  spending  one  winter  in  Albany,  N. 
Y.,  went  to  St  Lawrence  County,  where  he  rented 
a  farm  and  made  his  home  for  about  three  years. 
He  then  removed  to  Newark,  Ohio. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  spent  his  boyhood 
days  in  the  land  of  his  nativity,  and  acquired  his 
education  in  the  schools  of  Ireland  and  Albany. 
When  his  education  was  completed  he  began  work 
on  a  farm  in  St.  Lawrence  County,  N.  Y.,  where 
he  remained  for  eighteen  months,  when  he  re- 
moved to  Mt.  Morris,  N.  Y.,  where  his  brother 
Thomas  lived.  The  succeeding  five  years  of  his 
life  were  there  passed  and  during  that  time  he  was 
married,  on  the  13th  of  April,  1843,  to  Miss  Eliza 
Sutter,  daughter  of  §amuel  and  Elizabeth  (Kent) 
Sutter,  natives  of  Ireland.  Three  children  have 
been  born  unto  them,  one  .son  and  two  daughters: 
Ann,  John  and  Elizabeth.  The  eldest  became  the 
wife  of  Nelson  Springer,  and  died  October  16, 
1S91.  Elizabeth  is  the  wife  of  Thomas  Quinn,  a 
passenger  conductor  on  the  Chicago  &  North- 
western Railroad.  Thej'  have  three  children: 
Jessie,  Eliza  and  James. 

In  1S45,  Mr.  Conley  emigrated  Westward,  ac- 
companied by  his  family,  and  has  since  made  his 
home  in  DuPage  County.  He  purchased  a  farm 
of  forty  acres,  which  has  since  been  cut  up  into 
village  lots  and  now  compri.ses  the  town  of  Turner. 
For  that  tract  he  paid  $150,  and  after'  two  years 
sold  it  for  $275.  He  then  purchased  eighty  acres 
where  the  northeast  part  of  Turner  is  now  sit- 
uated, but  afterward  sold  and  bought  back  twenty 
acres  of  his  first  purchase,  which  he  still  owns. 
Later  he  became  owner  of  one  hundred  and  sixty- 
acres  a  mile  northwest  of  Turner,  to  which  he 
added  a  tract  of  .sixty-five  acres.  At  length  he  sold 
that  property  and,  opening  a  restaurant  at  the  de- 
pot, continued  its  operation  for  twenty-two  years, 
or  until  his  retirement  from  active  business  life. 
He  now  owns  a  good  home  and  a  number  of  busi- 
ness lots. 

Mr.  Conlej-  has  long  been  recognized  as  one  of 
the  prominent  and  influential  citizens  of  this  com- 
munit)-.  For  a  number  of  years  he  served  as 
School  Director  and  was  a  member  of  the  Board 
of  Trustees  for  two  years.  He  came  to  Turner 
when  there  was  onlj'  one  house  in  the  place,  and 


POKTkAlT  AND  HltXiRAPHICAI,    klXORD. 


•23 


in  consequence  has  witnessed  its  entire  growth 

and  devclopnicnl.  He  licgan  life  for  himself 
without  money,  l>ut  by  honest  and  arduous  toil 
he  has  seturetl  a  conijieteucN  for  old  aj-c,  and  at 
the  same  time  has  gained  the  respect  and  confi- 
dence of  all  who  know  him. 


^-^-l 


"=) 


EK.  THOMAS  G.   ISHKRWOOl),   a   physi- 
cian atid  surgeon  engagetl    in    jiraclice   in 
Tnnier,  claims  Iowa  as  the  State  of  his  na- 
tivity, his  birth  having  occurred  in  Mt.   \'esnon, 
on  the  30th  of  May,  1856.     The  family  isof  Hng- 
lish  origin.     His  grandfather,  Robert  Isherwooil, 
was  a  native  of  Liveqxxil,  luigland.  and  came  to 
America  in  an  early  day.  Kx-ating  in  Pennsylvania. 
After  a  time  he  removed  to  Iowa,  where  he  died 
at  the  age  of  eighty-six  years.     Thomas  G.  Isher- 
wooti.  the  father  of  our  subject,  wxs  Ixmi  in  Penn- 
sylvania, and  was  a  farmer  by  occupation.     He 
niarrie<l    Herpalicy   Lowry,   whose  father  was  a 
physician  of  the  Keystone  Stale,  and  there  died  at 
an  early  age.     I'nto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Isherwooti  were 
l)oni  three  sons  and  a  daughter,  all  of  whom  are 
yet  living,   namely:   Hortensius.   Alonzo,    Mattie 
and  Thomas  G.     On   leaving    Pennsylvania,   the 
father  went  to  Iowa,  in   1842,  locating  near  Mt. 
\'ernon,  where  he  purchased  (ioveniment  land, 
making  his  home  thereon  until  his  death,  which 
occurred  in  1 89 1 ,  at  the  age  of  seventy-seven  years. 
His  wife  is  still  living  in  that  Uxality.  and.  as  was 
her  huslKind.  is  a  mendier  of  the  Hapti.st  Church. 
He  first  purchased  one  hundretl  and  sixty  acres  of 
land,  to  which  he  added  from  time  to  time  until  at 
his  death  he  owned  four  hundred  and  forty  acres. 
The  Doctor  was  reared  on  his  father's  farm  in 
Iowa,  and  remainc-<l  under  the  parental  r<K>f  until 
he  had  arrived  at  man's  estate.     His  primary  ed- 
ucation was  acquired  in  the  schools  of  Mt.  Venion. 
and  later  he  completed  his  literary  studies  b\    his 
graduation  from  Cornell  College  in  iS.si.     Wish- 
ing to  enter  the  medical  profession,   he  then  at- 
lende<l  Rush  Medical  College  of  Chicago,  and  was 
graduati-<l  frnni  that  in.stitution  in   18S;.      Imme- 
diately thereafter  he  came  to  Turner,  ojiened   an 


office  and  began  practice.  As  the  years  have 
passed,  bringing  with  them  exjaTience  and  in- 
crea.setl  skill,  his  clientage  has  steadily  iiKreasc<l, 
and  he  is  now  enjo\  ing  a  large  and  luirative  prac 
tice. 

On  the  14th  of  SejilemlKr.  isn;,  l»r.  Islierwcj.Kl 
niarrie<l  Miss  l.i/zie  H.  Jones,  <laughter  of  M. 
Jones.  They  now  have  two  children:  Paul  A.  and 
Helen  I.ouise.  Their  home  is  a  pleasant  residence, 
which  the  Doctor  owns,  in  connection  with  other 
town  property.  Socially,  he  is  a  mendier  of  Am- 
ity Lodge  Xo.  472,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.;  Doric 
Chapter  No.  166,  R.  A.  M.;  and  Bethel  Com- 
mandery  No.  36.  K.  T..  of  Elgin.  He  also  be- 
longs to  the  Minlern  Wotxlmen  of  America  and  to 
the  Foresters.  In  inilitical  belief,  the  Doctor  is  a 
Democrat  and  was  honored  with  the  office  of 
President  of  the  Village  Hoard  in  iS.Si.  He  has 
served  as  surgeon  for  the  Northwestern  Railroad 
for  the  pxst  ten  years  and  is  also  .surgeon  for  the 
Ivlgin.  Joliet  &  F.astern  Railroad.  His  genial, 
helpful  nature  proves  almost  as  beneficial  in  the 
sick  room  as  his  medicines,  and  through  a  large 
extent  of  territf)r\  Dr.  Isher\vood's  ser\'ices  are 
greatly  in  demand. 


}^^r^l 


I 


()HN  K.  ST.\NI)IIK".i;.  wlio  for  almost  half 
a  century  has  made  his  home  in  Du  Page 
County,  and  is  numbered  among  its  early 
settlers,  is  now  engaged  in  the  Iiver>-  busine.ss  in 
Turner,  where  he  owns  go<xl  livery  barns  and  is 
doing  a  large  bu.sine.ss.  A  native  of  Ungland.  he 
was  Ijorn  in  Hull,  Yorkshire,  on  the  yth  of  Octo- 
lx:r,  1S40.  His  father,  Joseph  Standidge,  was 
also  a  native  of  the  same  ^untrj-,  and  was  a  farm- 
er by  occupation.  His  father  had  iK-en  a  butch- 
er and  in  Hngland  he  spent  his  entire  life,  «ly- 
ing  at  the  age  of  eighty  years.  Having  attained 
his  majority,  Joseph  Standidge  marrieil  1.^'titia 
Musgrove.  daughter  of  John  Musgrove,  a  sailor. 
They  became  the  parents  of  ten  children,  nine 
suns  and  a  daughter,  of  whom  John  V...  Martha, 
Thomas  and  William  are  now  living.  Kmigral 
ing  to  Americ-a  in  1S44.  Mr.  Standidge  locate<i  in 


124 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


DuPage  County.  Uvo  miles  east  of  the  present 
site  of  Turner,  where  he  purchased  forty  acres  of 
Government  land.  He  made  his  home  in  Win- 
field  To\vn.ship  for  about  four  years,  and  then  re- 
moved to  Wayne  Township,  where  he  bought  a 
farm  of  ninety  acres,  two  and  a-half  miles  north- 
east of  Wayne  Station,  where  he  lived  for  ten 
years.  His  death  occurred  in  1870.  at  the  age  of 
seventy  years,  and  his  wife,  who  sun-ived  him  un- 
til 1873.  passed  away  at  the  age  of  sixty -three 
^-ears.  The  were  both  members  of  the  Episcopal 
Church,  and  were  people  of  sterling  worth. 

Our  subject  was  a  child  of  only  four  years  when 
he  crossed  the  broad  Atlantic  and  located  in  Illi- 
nois. He  was  reared  upon  his  father's  farm,  re- 
maining at  home  until  he  had  attained  his  niajor- 
itv,  his  time  being  spent  in  farm  labor  and  in  at- 
tendance at  the  public  schools,  where  he  acquired 
a  good  English  education.  After  arriving  at 
man's  estate,  he  began  dealing  in  agricultural 
implements,  and  has  been  connected  with  that 
line  of  business  more  or  less  continuously  since. 
In  1886,  he  bought  the  liven,-  .stable  and  outfit  of 
Harrison  Sargent,  and  has  since  continued  that 
business. 

On  Christmas  Day  of  1S63,  Mr.  Standidge  was 
joined  in  wedlock  with  Miss  Eunice  Millard, 
daughter  of  Sylvanus  and  Hainiah  (Smith)  Mil- 
lard, natives  of  the  Empire  State.  They  be- 
came the  parents  of  four  sons  and  three  daughters: 
Frankie.  now  the  wife  of  John  Robertson,  of  Tur- 
ner, by  whom  she  has  one  child,  Eunice:  Eugene, 
RoUin,  Maude,  Grace,  Elbert,  and  Man,-,  who 
died  at  the  age  of  one  year.  The  mother  of  this 
family  was  called  to  her  final  rest  in  January-,  1887, 
at  the  age  of  thirty-  six  years.  She  was  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Methodist  Church,  and  throughout  the 
community  her  loss  was  deeply  mourned. 

Mr.  Standidge  holds  membership  with  J.  B. 
Turner  Lodge  No.  420,  I.  O.  O.  F.  He  exer- 
cises his  right  of  franchise  in  support  of  the  Re- 
publican party,  and  has  been  elected  two  terms  as 
Township  Collector.  He  was  also  Constable  for 
about  nine  years,  and  in  1892  was  Census-taker. 
He  came  to  Turner  when  it  contained  only  two 
houses,  and  has  therefore  witnessed  its  entire 
growth  and  development.     All  enterprises  calcu- 


lated to  prove  of  public  benefit  have  received  his 
heart}-  support  and  co-operation,  and  the  part 
which  he  has  taken  in  the  upbuilding  of  the 
town  places  him  among  its  founders. 


^^ 


1^" 


EHARLES  E.  NORRIS  makes  his  home  in 
Turner,  where  nearly  his  entire  life  has  been 
passed.  He  is  a  dealer  in  furniture  and  is 
also  engaged  in  the  undertaking  business.  He  is 
a  native  of  the  Empire  State,  having  been  born 
near  Rome,  on  the  6th  of  Februar\-,  1S53.  His 
parents,  Augustus  and  Caroline  (Avard)  Norris, 
were  both  natives  of  England.  The  paternal 
grandfather  was  also  born  in  England,  reared  a 
family  of  five  children,  and  died  while  yel  in  mid- 
dle life.  William  Avard.  the  maternal  grand- 
father, who  was  also  of  English  birth,  emigrated 
to  America  about  the  j-ear  1847.  He  was  princi- 
pally engaged  in  the  pursuit  of  agriculture.  His 
death  occurred  in  Turner  about  1870,  when  he 
had  reached  the  age  of  seventy-five  years.  In 
religious  faith,  he  was  a  Baptist. 

The  father  of  our  .subject  learned  the  carpen- 
ter's trade  when  a  young  man,  and  followed 'that 
business  for  many  years.  With  his  wife  he 
crossed  the  Atlantic  and  landed  in  the  United 
States  in  1847.  Locating  near  Rome.  X.  Y.,  he 
there  continued  to  make  his  home  for  a  period  of 
eight  years.  It  was  in  1855  that  he  turned  his 
face  toward  the  West,  and,  concluding  to  locate  in 
Illinois,  settled  in  Turner.  For  many  years  he 
engaged  in  work  at  his  trade,  but  is  now  li\ing 
retired  from  business  cares  and  is  still  making  his 
home  in  Turner,  where  he  was  one  of  the  earliest 
settlers.  His  home  is  on  a  piece  of  land  compris- 
ing about  fourteen  acres,  for  which  he  paid  some 
$600.  He  has  sold  a  portion  of  it  at  the  rate  of  S2.- 
000  per  acre.  He  and  his  wife  are  members  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church  of  this  jBace  and  are 
public-spirited  citizens.  To  them  was  born  a  fam- 
ily of  six  children,  four  sons  and  two  daughters. 
Three  of  the  number  are  now  living,  namely: 
Charles  E..  Albert  E.  and  John  E. 

Charles  E.  Xorris  whose  histon-   we  will  now 


(ph.i(o<lby  MUli>.) 


PORTK-\lT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RliCORD. 


125 


proceed  to  iraiv  was  tmly  tAvo  years  old  when  his 
parent<i  brought  liim  to  Illinois,  and  nearly  his 
whole  life  has  lieen  passed  in  Turner,  where  he 
was  reari.-<l  to  niaiilKKnl  and  cilucatetl.  He  re- 
niaineil  mukr  tlu-  ivircntal  roof  until  his  marriage, 
and  it  is  a  rather  singular  fact  that  since  his  ar- 
rival in  the  village  he  has  never  iK-en  away  for 
more  than  a  week  at  a  tinie.  Alxuit  the  year 
1874,  in  a)nipany  with  his  father,  who  had  given 
up  his  trade,  he  emharke<l  in  the  furniture  and 
un<lertaking  business.  Two  years  later  he  ixiught 
out  his  fathers  interest,  and  has  since  continued 
in  business  alone.  He  owns  considerable  valuable 
real  estate,  is  a  man  of  good  executive  ability,  and 
exercises  wise  judgment  in  the  investment  of  his 
means.  He  owns  a  ginxl  residence  projxTty.  the 
building  in  which  his  store  is  locate<l.  and  other 
valuable  projierty  in  the  town.  In  addition  to 
this  he  owns  a  well-improved  fann,  comprising 
eighty-five  acres,  which  is  lt)caleil  ju.sl  east  i>f 
Turner. 

The  marri.igi-  i>i  .Mr.  Xorris  was  celebrated  in 
May.  1X77.  with  Miss  Alta  F.  Clark.  She  is  a 
daughter  of  Lyman  C.  and  I..aura  K.  (  Balx-ock ) 
Clark,  well-known  and  honored  cititzens  of  this 
place.  Four  children  have  conie  to  ble.ss  the 
union  of  our  subject  and  his  wife,  and  in  order  of 
birth  they  are  as  follows:  Herl)ert  C  Carroll  \V.. 
Kmest  L.  and  Florence. 

For  one  year  Mr.  Norris  acted  in  the  capacity 
of  \'illage  Clerk  and  has  always  been  prominent 
in  promoting  all  IcK^al  enten)riscs.  He  deixisits 
his  ballot  in  favor  of  Republican  nominees,  and  is 
greatly  interested  in  the  success  of  his  party, 
though  he  is  not  a  politician  in  the  modem  ac- 
ceptance of  the  tenn.  He  is  g^reatly  interestetl  in 
civic  sf)cieties.  Ixring  a  nieml>er  of  Amity  Lmige 
No.  472.  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  in  which  he  is  Worth> 
Ma.ster,  having  served  as  such  for  three  years;  of 
Doric  Chapter  No.  166.  in  which  he  has  filled  the 
office  of  High  I'riest  five  years,  .still  hohling  that 
]>osition;  and  of  Bethel  Commanden,  No.  .^6,  of 
Flgin.  He  is  als<j  connected  with  the  Order  of 
the  Iv;i.stern  Star,  to  which  Mrs.  Norris  ix-longs. 
As  a  niemlier  c>f  the  Motleni  \V<xxlmen  of  Am- 
erica, he  lielongs  to  Cold  I^-af  Camj)  No.  1  lo.v 
In  the  work  of  the   Methodi.st   Fpiscopal  Church 


of  Turner.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Norris  have  long  been 
greatly  interested  and  active  workers.  He  has 
.serve<l  in  an  official  capacity  in  the  same,  and  is 
now  Steward,  Secretary  and  Treasurer.  As  a 
man  of  known  worth  and  strict  integrity,  he  well 
merits  the  high  regard  in  which  lie  is  hehl  by  all 
who  have  the  pleasure  of  his  accjuaintance. 


^3 


-^^r^m-^ 


1 


RA 


ALBKO.  a  retired  fanner  residing  in 
Wayne  Townshij),  is  well  worthy  of  repre- 
sentation in  the  history  of  DuPage  County, 
for  he  is  numl)eretl  among  its  honore<l  pioneers  of 
1S35.  and  has  Iwnie  an  active  j)art  in  its  growth 
and  ujjbuilding.  A  native  of  the  lunjjire  State, 
he  was  born  in  I^rie  County.  Octolier  .^1,  i8oy. 
His  father.  John  Albro.  was  lK)rn  in  1776,  and  in 
an  early  day  removed  with  the  family  from  Nova 
Scotia  to  Rhode  Island,  but  he  left  that  State  at 
the  age  of  si.xteen,  and  iK-came  a  resident  of  Sara- 
toga County,  N.  Y..  where  he  engaged  in  rafting 
and  in  the  hnnber  busine.ss  on  the  Hudson  River 
for  a  number  of  years.  He  was  twice  marrieti. 
In  Saratoga  County  he  wedded  Betsy  Dunham, 
and  in  1807  remove*!  to  Krie  County,  which  was 
then  an  almost  unbroken  wilderness.  There,  in 
the  midst  of  the  fore.st,  he  ojHrnetl  up  a  farm  and 
reared  his  family.  In  Monr<»e  County,  he  mar- 
ried Martha  Ciardner.  a  native  of  Newton.  N.  Y., 
and  a  daughter  of  John  (iardner.  one  of  the  early 
settlers  of  Monroe  County.  In  i«53.  Mr.  Albro 
came  to  Illinois,  and  spent  his  last  days  in  the 
homeof  our  subject,  dying  F'ebrnary  2,  1861.  He 
served  as  a  soldier  in  the  War  of  1.S12.  His  wife 
sur\Mved  him  about  a  >ear.  an<l  pas.se<l  awa.v  Jan- 
uary 4,  1X62.  She  die<l  in  Buffiilo,  N.  Y.,  and 
was  buried  in  the  Buffalo  Cemeter\-,  by  the  side 
<if  her  daughter. 

John  Albro  had  ten  children,  three  by  the  first 
union  and  seven  by  the  .second  marriage  Knier>- 
I),  died  at  the  age  of  seventy  two.  lunily  is  next. 
Melvina  marrie<l  Frederick  White.  an«l  Initli  are 
now  decease<l.  Sallie  Maria  became  the  wife  of 
Harn  Kix-ney.  an<l  iHith  have  jm.vse*!  awa> .  Ira 
is  the  next  younger,  anil  Fli/.a  resides  with  him. 


126 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


James  R.  is  living  in  Cliautauqna  County,  N.  Y. 
Augustus  G.  is  a  resident  of  Pennsj-lvania.  Jer- 
ome B.,  Almira  and  Harriet  Celina  are  deceased. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  spent  his  boj-hood 
and  youth  in  the  county  of  his  nativity,  and  his 
early  education,  acquired  in  the  common  schools, 
was  supplemented  b}'  an  academic  course.  He 
then  successfully  engaged  in_  teaching  for  three 
terms,  and  in  1S35  he  .started  westward,  reach- 
ing Chicago  on  the  loth  of  May.  The  western 
metropolis  then  contained  about  a  thousand  peo- 
ple. He  spent  the  first  summer  on  a  farm  in  Lake 
County,  and  in  September  came  to  this  county, 
where  he  entered  two  hundred  and  twenty-seven 
acres  of  land  from  the  Government.  It  was  en- 
tirely destitute  of  improvement,  and  he  turned  the 
first  furrow  upon  it,  but,  as  the  years  passed,  acre 
after  acre  was  placed  under  the  plow,  and  the 
highly  cultivated  farm  now  yields  to  him  a  good 
income.  In  connection  with  agricultural  pur- 
suits, Mr.  Albro  has  been  engaged  in  the  dairy 
business  and  in  the  manufacture  of  cheese.  He 
has  a  substantial  residence  and  good  barns  and 
outbuildings  upon  his  place,  and  all  the  other  im- 
provements are  first-class. 

The  fine  farm  stands  as  a  nionumeut  to  the 
thrift  and  enterprise  of  the  owner,  who  has  led  a 
busy  and  useful  life,  and  has  had  a  successful 
career.  His  prosperity  is  certainly  well  deserved, 
as  it  is  the  reward  of  his  own  efforts. 

On  the  29th  of  September,  1839,  Mr.  Albro 
married  Miss  Betsy  Dunham,  a  daughter  of  Solo- 
mon Dunham.  She  was  a  native  of  Erie  County, 
N.  Y.,  and  there  remained  until  sixteen  years  of 
age.  Her  death  occurred  October  25,  1880,  and 
she  was  laid  to  rest  in  Little  Woods  Cemetery. 

Adrian  D.  Albro,  the  only  .son  of  this  union,  is 
a  man  of  good  education  and  business  ability, well 
known  throughout  this  community.  He  married 
Sylvira  M.  Hathaway,  daughter  of  E.  T.  Hatha- 
wa)',  and  the}-  began  their  domestic  life  upon  the 
old  homestead  farm  which  Mr.  Albro  has  man- 
aged and  operated  for  some  years.  He  is  recog- 
nized as  a  wide-awake  and  enterprising  agricul- 
turist. 

The  father,  Ira  Albro,  ca.st  his  first  Presidential 
vote  for  Martin  Van  Buren,  in  1836,  and  has  since 


supported  the  men  and  measures  of  the  Demo- 
cratic party.  He  has  filled  a  number  of  local 
offices  of  honor  and  trust,  was  Township  Super- 
visor, Highwa}'  Commissioner,  Trustee,  and  for 
about  ten  years  was  School  Treasurer.  In  what- 
ever position  he  has  been  called  upon  to  fill,  he 
has  proved  a  faithful  and  efficient  officer,  dis- 
charging his  duties  with  promptness  and  fidelity. 
His  residence  in  this  community  covers  a  period 
of  fifty-eight  years,  and  he  has  watched  the  de- 
velopment of  the  county  from  an  almost  unbroken 
wilderness  to  one  of  the  best  counties  of  the  com- 
monwealth. An  honorable,  upright  life  he  has 
led,  and  as  one  of  the  pioneer  settlers  and  leading 
citizens  he  is  deserving  of  representation  in  this 
volume. 

>(S_ 


Gl  NDREW  DEMPSEY,  one  of  the  well-known 
LI  business  men  of  Turner,  and  one  of  its  most 
/  I  enterprising  and  progressive  citizens,  is  num- 
bered among  the  native  sons  of  this  place,  his 
birth  having  here  occurred  on  the  12th  of  Octo- 
ber, 185S.  He  comes  of  a  family  of  Irish  origin. 
Both  of  his  grandfathers  lived  and  died  on  the 
Green  Isle  of  Erin,  and  his  parents,  Patrick  and 
Catherine  (Brennan)  Denipsey,  were  there  born 
and  married.  Wi.shing  to  try  their  fortune  in  the 
New  World,  the}-  crossed  the  Atlantic  and  came 
to  DuPage  County  when  it  was  almost  an  un- 
broken wilderness,  and  before  the  railroad  had 
been  built.  Mr.  Dempsey  was  a  railroad  man, 
and  had  charge  of  the  yards  in  Turner  for  many 
years.  He  died  in  1868,  at  the  age  of  forty-two 
years.  His  wife  still  sunaves  him,  and,  as  was  her 
hu.sband,  she  is  a  member  of  the  Catholic  Church. 
In  taking  up  the  personal  history  of  the  gentle- 
man whose  name  heads  this  record,  we  present  to 
our  readers  a  sketch  of  the  life  of  one  of  the  well- 
known  and  esteemed  citizens.  He  was  both  reared 
and  educated  in  Turner,  in  fact  has  hardly  known 
another  home.  His  interests  have  always  been 
connected  with  this  place.  He  began  railroading 
at  the  age  of  fifteen  years,  and  followed  it  in  .some 
of  its  various  branches  from  that  time  until  1802, 


/,  yy^ /^^^i^OTA^ 


fy^'nc- 


/P2A^.  Vh  COLO ,  !u>A^'i  (^*i 


i^<5, 


ini. 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RIXORD. 


when    he  abandoned   it  for  other  pursuits.     In   | 
iSSS  he   l>egan  working   for  the   Illiiiuis  Central 
Railroad  Coniivnu  ,  on  constrmtiori  l>ctwtxn Chi- 
cago  and    I*"riT.-jK>rt,    an<l    aflerwani  went    West, 
running  a    train    Iwtween    Helena  and   Hillings,    i 
Mont.      In  i.S,S9  he  retunieil  to  Turner.  Imt  after   ' 
a  few  nionth.s  went   to   Nebraska,  where  he  was    i 
conductor  on   a    freight   train,   running  lx.-tween 
Missouri  Valley  and  Long   Pine.     On   his   return    | 
to  Illinois,  he  located  in  Chicago,  and  workeil  in 
the  yards  of  the  Northwestern  Railroad  Company 
until  the  sirring  of  1S9J.  when  he  formed  a  part- 
nership with  J.  C.  Wahl,  and  put  in  an  electric- 
light  plant  for  the  village  of  Turner,  lighting  the 
streets  and  a  numlier  of  the  business  houses  and 
residences.     The  Ft.    Wayne  System  is  the  one 
now  in  use. 

Mr.  Dcnipsey  is  a  member  of  the  Order  of  Rail- 
way Conductors.  In  his  political  views,  he  is 
independent,  supporting  by  his  ballot  the  man 
whom  he  thinks  l)csl  qualified  for  the  office.  He 
has  succeeded  in  his  business  affairs,  and  is  now 
the  owner  of  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  of  fami 
land  near  St.  Paul.  Howard  County,  Neb.,  be- 
sides his  interest  in  the  electric-light  plant.  He 
possesses  good  business  and  executive  ability,  and 
by  his  well-directed  efforts  and  able  management 
has  made  himself  well-to-do. 


i^^l 


'HoMAS  WARRKN  WATSON,  a  retired 
farmer  and  black.smith  resiiling  in  Warren- 
\  ille,  was  bom  on  the  Emerald  Isle,  on  the 
5th  of  April,  1818,  and  is  one  of  a  family  of 
twelve  children,  four  sons  and  eight  daughters, 
who  were  bom  to  William  and  Ann  (Warren) 
WaLson.  The  educational  privileges  of  our  sub- 
ject were  very  meagre,  and  at  the  early  age  of 
fifteen  years  he  began  life  for  hini.self.  since 
which  time  he  has  Ijeen  dependent  upon  his  own 
resources  for  a  livelihood.  He  was  a  lad  of  only 
eight  summers  when,  in  1826,  he  cros.sed  the 
Atlantic  to  America  on  a  sailing -ves.sel,  which, 
after  several  weeks  sjient  upon  the  Ixisom  of  the 
Atlantic,  dropped  anchor  in  the  harbor  of  New 


York  City.  He  then  went  to  BuflTalo.  N.  Y..  where 
he  grew  to  manhcxMl,  and  at  the  age  of  fifteen 
l)egan  learning  the  blacksmith's  trade.  He  re- 
mained in  the  Kmpire  State  until  i«,'56,  which 
year  witnessetl  his  arrival  in  Illinois. 

Mr.  Wat.son  at  once  locate«l  in  Warrenville, 
I)u  Page  County,  where  he  openeil  a  blacksmith 
shop  and  reinainetl  for  one  year.  He  then  went 
to  Galena.  111.,  where  he  worked  at  his  trade  for 
three  years.  On  the  exi)iration  of  that  time  he 
returned  to  Warrenville.  and  resume*!  the  black- 
.smithing  business,  which  hecarrietl  on  until  18S1. 
Pos.sessing,  natural  mechanical  genius,  he  Ije- 
camc  a  skilled  workman,  which,  ojmbined  with 
prompt  attention  to  business,  insuretl  him  a  large 
patronage.  Ki>r  alxut  a  quarter  of  a  century  he 
devoted  considerable  time  to  manufacturing  plows, 
and  made  many  of  the  first  breaking-plows  u.sed 
in  this  part  of  the  State. 

On  the  loth  of  April.  1844,  Mr.  Watson  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Mary  Lucretia 
Kline,  a  daughter  of  Jasjx.r  M.  and  Henrietta  L. 
(Krebellet  Kline.  She  was  bom  in  Baltimore, 
Md.,  September  14,  1S24,  was  one  of  six  chil- 
dren I  four  .sons  and  two  daughters  1 ,  and  came 
with  her  parents  to  this  county  in  1835,  the  fani- 
ilv  iK-ing  numbered  among  the  pioneer  settlers. 

In  her  youth  Mrs.  Watson  enjoyed  very  mea- 
gre advantages  for  acquiring  an  education,  her 
instmctioti  having  l>een  limited  to  a  short  term  at 
school  in  New  Vi>rk  City,  where  her  parents  re- 
sided a  few  years  before  coming  West.  She  is  a 
woman  of  superior  natural  ability,  and  has  al- 
ways made  the  most  of  her  opportunities.  En- 
dowed with  good  reasoning  faculties,  a  retentive 
memory,  and  a  fondtiess  for  Ixxiks  and  reading, 
she  has  Ijccome  well  informed.  Intellectually,  she 
is  far  above  the  average  person  of  her  years,  and 
is  an  agreeable  cr)uversationalist,  who  easily  ex- 
pres,ses  herself  in  well-chosen  language.  She 
possesses  many  excellencies  of  heart  and  head 
and  enjoys,  as  .she  deser\'es.  the  respect  of  a  large 
circle  of  friends. 

To  Mr.  and  .Mrs.  Watson  has  l>een  lM>m  a 
family  of  six  children.  Casj>cr  William,  having 
learned  the  blacksmiths  trade  in  his  fathers 
shop,    when   eighteen  years   of  age   enlisted    in 


132 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


the  Union  armj^  for  the  suppression  of  the  Rebel- 
lion, as  a  member  of  Company  H,  Twenty-third 
Illinois  Infantry,  and  served  until  the  close  of  the 
war.  .He  afterwards  became  a  resident  of  Whea- 
ton,  where  he  conducted  a  blacksmith  shop,  and 
for  about  eighteen  years  was  Deputy  Sheriff  of 
Du  Page  County.  He  died  at  his  home  in  that 
city  on  the  30th  of  November,  1893,  leaving  a 
wife  and  four  children.  Thomas  Theodore,  who 
is  Director  General  of  the  Equitable  Life  In- 
surance Company,  is  now  in  South  America; 
George  E.  is  a  contractor  and  builder  of  Batavia, 
111. :  John  Henry  is  a  farmer  of  Sac  County,  Iowa; 
Daniel  W.  and  Walter  E.  both  died  in  1S61. 

Mr.  Watson  is  a  self-made  man,  and  by  per- 
severance and  industry,  assisted  and  encouraged 
by  his  frugal  wile,  has  overcome  the  obstacles  in 
his  path,  working  his  wa}-  upward  to  success. 
The  prosperity  which  has  crowned  his  earnest 
efforts  now  enables  him  to  live  retired,  in  the  en- 
joyment of  the  rest  which  he  has  so  trul\-  earned 
and  richly  deserv^es.  He  has  always  been  a  sup- 
porter of  the  Democratic  part)-,  but  has  never 
been  an  office-seeker.  The  community  finds  in 
him  a  good  citizen,  who  is  faithful  to  all  duties, 
and  in  all  public  affairs  calculated  to  promote  the 
general  welfare  he  willingly  bears  his  part.  He 
is  numbered  among  the  honored  pioneers  of  the 
county  and  well  deserves  mention  in  its  history. 


-S3 


^-i-^ 


(^_ 


[=- 


UJEWTON  E.  MATTER,  editor  and  proprietor 
I  /  of  the  Wheaton  Illinoian,  has  been  a  mem- 
I  /s  ber  of  the  business  circles  of  this  place  for 
but  a  comparativeh-  short  time,  yet  is  quite  well 
known  throughout  DuPage  Countj',  as  he  was 
born  and  reared  in  Will  County,  near  the  county 
line  of  DuPage.  His  birth  occurred  in  Wheat- 
land Township,  June  21,  1859.  He  is  a  son  of 
Jacob  and  Nancy  (Milliron)  Matter,  who  were 
born,  reared  and  married  in  Pennsylvania.  The 
Matters  have  been  a  ver>-  thrifty  farming  people 
for  several  generations  and  come  of  German  an- 
cestry. They  are  hale  and  hearty,  and  their  in- 
dustry has  made  them  well-to-do,  while  their  in- 


telligence and  morality  have  won  for  them  high 
esteem  as  men  of  sterling  worth.  The  father  of 
our  subject  was  born  in  Dauphin  County,  Pa., 
and  in  1844  came  to  Will  County,  111.,  locating 
in  Wheatland  Township,  where  he  took  up  land 
from  the  Government.  There  he  continued  farm- 
ing until  1868,  when  he  embarked  in  merchandis- 
ing in  Aurora,  being  tluis  engaged  until  1876. 
His  death  occurred  November  30,  1889,  at  the 
age  of  .seventy-one  years.  He  held  several  town- 
.ship  and  .school  offices  in  Will  County,  and  was  a 
prominent  and  influential  citizen.  His  widow 
-still  survives  him,  and  is  now  living  in  Naper- 
ville,  at  the  age  of  sevent\--three  years.  In  the 
Matter  family  were  eleven  children,  ten  of  whom 
are  yet  living,  namelj-;  Abraham,  who  owns  the 
old  Matter  home.stead;  Lsaac,  a  con.structionist  on 
the  Chicago,  Burlington  &  Quincy  Railroad,  re- 
siding in  Aurora;  Mar\-  A.,  wife  of  Rev.  J.  H. 
Yagg)-,  who  is  living  in  Des  Moines,  Iowa; 
Abbie,  wife  of  D.  B.  Givler,  editor  of  the  Naper- 
ville  Clarion;  Henni'J. ,  who  is  employed  in  the 
freight  department  of  the  Chicago,  Burlington  & 
Ouincy  Railroad  Works  in  Aurora,  111.;  Ellen, 
wife  of  Prof  L-  M.  Umbach,  of  the  Northwestern 
College,  of  Naperville;  Sarah  J.,  wife  of  George 
S.  Bartholomew,  foreman  of  the  .silver-plate 
works  of  Rockford,  111.;  Emma  M.,  wife  of  John 
P.  Patterson,  a  farmer  of  Wheatland  Tow-nship, 
WiU  County;  Newton  E.,  of  this  sketch:  and 
Elton  E.,  a  farmer  of  Wheatland  Township,  Will 
County. 

The  first  nine  years  of  his  life  our  subject  spent 
upon  his  father's  farm,  and  then  accompanied  his 
parents  on  their  removal  to  Aurora,  where  he  at- 
tended the  public  schools  and  laid  the  foutidation 
for  a  good  education,  which  was  completed  by 
studj-  in  the  Northwestern  College,  of  Naper- 
ville, 111.  His  connection  with  the  printing  busi- 
ness began  at  the  age  of  thirteen,  when  he  en- 
tered the  office  of  the  Naper\-ille  Clarion,  .ser\-ing 
as  office  boy.  He  also  worked  for  a  while  on 
the  Daily  Ncics,  of  Aurora,  but  was  identified 
with  the  Clarion  office  during  the  greater  part  of 
the  time  from  his  fourteenth  year  until  coming 
to  Wheaton  in  18S9.  On  coming  to  this  place  he 
purchased   the   Illinoian    and  became  proprietor 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL    RI-CORD. 


^Si 


and  editor  on  the  i8th  of  Fcbnian-.  The  lUhwian 
is  at  jircseiit  tin.-  oldest  pajier  in  the  county.  It 
is  an  cinhtpaKC  weekly,  devottnl  to  U>c-al  and 
general  county  news,  and  is  stanclily  Republican 
in  iM)litics.  It  enjoys  a  lar>,'e  and  constantly  in- 
creasing patronage,  of  which  it  is  well  deserving. 
In  c<ninection  with  the  publication  of  the  pajK-r, 
Mr.  Matter  does  considerable  job  wi>rk.  He  runs 
three  presses,  operated  by  steam  iH)wer.  and  the 
office  is  well  i-quipixd  for  all  kinds  of  printing. 

In  iSS6  Mr.  Matter  married  Rebecca  H.  Stark, 
of  Wheatland,  and  unto  them  have  lx.'en  born  two 
-sons,  Raymond  E.  and  HerlxTt  J.  The  parents 
are  both  members  of  the  Methodist  Ivpiscopal 
Church.  They  have  a  pleasant  home  on  Scott 
Street,  which  Mr.  Matter  owns,  in  addition  to 
his  printing  iifl'ice.  He  takes  con.siderable  inter- 
est in  the  DuPage  County  Fair,  has  Ixx-n  Secre- 
lan-  of  the  Fair  Association,  and  is  now  Corre- 
.sjxmding  Secretar>-.  In  fact,  he  jnanifests  a  com- 
mendable interest  in  ever>thing  that  jiertains  to 
the  welfare  of  the  town  and  county,  and  does  all  in 
his  i)ower  to  promote  tho.se  enterprises  calculated 
to  prove  of  public  benefit. 


1^-+^ 


RICHARD  S.  GOUGH,  Manager  of  the  Postal 
Telegraph  Cable  Compan>-  at  the  stock 
yards  in  Chicago,  although  doing  business 
in  the  njetrojKjlis  of  the  West,  makes  his  home  in 
Turner,  preferring  the  quiet  of  a  small  town  in 
which  to  sjx-nd  his  leisure  hours.  Kngland  has 
furnished  a  numl)er  of  valued  citizens  to  l)u  Page 
County,  among  whom  is  our  subject.  He  was 
Ixini  in  Buckingham.  Kngland,  February  6, 
1844.  and  his  parents,  James  and  Ann  <  Scott ) 
Gough.  were  also  natives  of  the  same  annitry. 
The  jiaternal  gramlfather  was  an  luiglish  fanner, 
and  si)ent  his  entire  life  in  his  native  land.  The 
maternal  grandfather,  William  Scott,  who  was 
also  an  agricidturist,  was  a  memlx-r  of  the  regular 
militia,  and  was  an  Fpiscojialian  in  religious  lic- 
lief      He  reiichetl  a  ver\-  ad\"anced  age. 

James  Cough  was  an  exten«^e  farmer  of  Huck- 
ingbajnshire.  and  diet!  in  the  Jaail  of  his  birth  in 


1851,  at  the  .ii;c  ul  forty-two  nu.hs.  His  wife 
long  survived  him,  pa.ssing  away  in  1H92,  at  the 
age  of  eighty.  They  were  ImHIi  memlters  of  the 
Hpiscopalian  Church.  He  was  one  of  the  ^par- 
ish officials,  and  l>elonge<l  to  the  Royal  Kucks 
Yeoniann,-,  a  cavalry  as.st)ciation.  In  the  Gough 
family  were  three  sons  and  three  daughters,  but 
only  two  are  now  living:  Richard  S.,  and  Relnx-ca, 
who  is  now  a  resident  of  Great  Marlow,  Ivngland. 

Richard  S.  Gcmgh  left  his  native  land  in  1859, 
at  the  age  of  fourteen  years,  and,  coniing  to  Amer- 
ica, located  in  Hrookh  n,  N.  Y.,  where  he  spent 
one  winter.  The  next  sununer  was  also  sik-iU  in 
the  ICmpire  State,  and  in  1861  he  made  his  way 
westward  to  Chicago.  He  there  enlisted  in  the 
war,  in  the  telegraj>h  service,  and  served  for  two 
and  a-half  years,  when  he  was  discharged  on  ac- 
count of  sickne.ss.  After  the  war  he  went  to  Dix- 
on, 111.,  as  telegraph  operator,  sjK-nding  one  year 
at  that  i)lace,  and  going  thence  to  Bureau  Junc- 
tion, where  he  serxed  in  the  capacity  of  oj>erator 
for  two  years.  His  next  location  was  in  Musca- 
tine. Iowa,  and  sub.sec[ueutly  we  find  him  in 
Wilton  Junction,  Iowa,  where  he  was  employed 
as  agent  for  the  Chicago  &  Rf)ck  Island  Railroad 
Conijiany,  remaining  in  that  place  until  1867. 
That  year  witnessed  his  arrival  in  Chicago,  and 
saw  him  employefl  in  the  Chicago  Union  Stock 
Yards,  as  chief  operator  in  the  office  of  the  West- 
ern Union  Company.  In  May,  1872,  he  was  ap- 
pointed manager  of  the  office,  which  position  he 
filled  until  iSSi.  when  he  resignetl  to  acx-ept  the 
jwsition  of  manager  for  the  Mutual  Union  Com- 
pany at  the  stock  yards.  With  that  company  he 
remained  until  18S3,  when  the  two  companies 
consolidated,  and  he  then  accepted  the  jiosition  of 
manager  of  the  Postal  Telegraph  Cable  Company, 
which  he  has  fille<l  to  the  present  time,  employing 
two  as.sistants.  He  now  has  charge  of  thirty-seven 
men,  and  the  business  has  increased  from  $3,600 
to  $200,000  jx-r  year. 

On  the  8th  of  June,  1S64.  Mr.  G<iugh  wedded 
Miss  Sarah  K  ,  daughter  of  Iv  H.  and  Jane  (Sher- 
man) Ketcham.  .Seven  children  have  bles.sed 
this  union,  two  sons  and  five  daughters.  Ger- 
trude, the  eldest.  marrie<l  Connell  Sheffler,  who  is 
engaged  in  business  in  the  stock  yards  iti  Chicago, 


134 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


and  they  have  two  sons,  Richard  and  Rankin. 
Julia  is  the  next  younger.  Jennie  is  the  wife  of 
Charles  E.  Trescott,  a  printer  of  Choteau,  Mont., 
by  whom  she  has  two  children,  Gertrude  and 
Richard.  The  other  members  of  the  family  are 
Alice,  Rea  and  Raymond.  One  died  in  infancy. 
The  family  occupies  a  pleasant  home  in  Turner, 
which  is  the  property  of  Mr.  Gough,  who  also 
owns  several  town  lots.  He  is  a  member  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  of  the  Modem 
Woodmen,  and  of  the  Telegraphic  Mutual  Benefit 
Association.  For  about  two  j-ears  he  was  Presi- 
dent of  the  School  Board  in  Turner,  and  dis- 
charged the  duties  of  that  position  with  the  same 
fidelity  which  has  characterized  all  his  affairs, 
both  public  and  private.  He  now  occupies  a  very 
responsible  position,  and  that  he  discharges  his 
duties  faithfully  and  well  is  manifest  by  his  long 
continuance  in  the  ser\-ice.  He  is  a  man  of  good 
busine.ss  ability,  honorable  and  upright  in  all  his 
dealings,  and  ha.s  the  confidence  and  good-will  of 
those  with  whom  he  has  been  brought  in  contact. 

QhARLES  FREMONT  REED,  one  of  the 
|(  succes-sful  agriculturists  of  DuPage  County, 
\J  resides  on  .section  35,  Wayne  Township. 
He  was  born  on  the  farm  wliich  is  still  his  home 
on  the  27th  of  July,  1S56,  and  is  a  wortliy  repre- 
sentative of  a  pioneer  family.  His  father,  George 
W.  Reed,  was  born  in  \''ermont,  Februar\'  22, 
1806,  and  after  lie  had  arrived  at  years  of  matur- 
ity was  there  united  in  marriage  with  Mi.ss  Julia 
Ann  Ellinwood,  al.so  a  native  of  the  Green  Moun- 
tain State.  They  lived  in  the  Ea.st  until  1840, 
and  then  sought  a  home  in  Illinois,  taking  up 
their  residence  in  Wayne  Township,  DuPage 
County.  Mr.  Reed  secured  a  claim  and  began 
the  development  of  a  farm,  upon  which  he  lived 
for  about  a  year.  He  then  removed  to  the  farm 
upon  which  his  son  now  resides,  and  began  to 
clear  and  improve  the  same.  Upon  it  he  placed 
many  good  improvements  and  made  of  it  a  val- 
uable and  desirable  home.  He  was  very  success- 
ful  in   his   business   dealings,  acquiring  a  hand- 


some competency.  He  spent  the  last  years  of  his 
life  on  the  old  homestead,  and  passed  awa}-  Feb- 
ruary 22,  1890,  on  his  eighty-fourth  birthday. 
He  was  laid  to  rest  in  Wayne  Cemetery,  where  a 
neat  and  substantial  monument  has  been  erected 
to  his  memory.  His  wife  still  survives  him,  and 
is  living  on  the  old  homestead  with  her  son. 

Charles  Reed  is  the  youngest  son  in  the  familj' 
of  seven  children,  all  of  whom  grew  to  mature 
years  and  became  heads  of  families.  He  spent 
his  boyhood  and  ^-outh  in  his  parents'  home  and 
early  became  familiar  with  all  the  duties  of  farm 
life.  He  attended  the  district  schools  of  the  neigh- 
borhood, and  his  primary  education  was  supple- 
mented bj-  several  years'  attendance  at  the  High 
School  of  Turner.  For  several  years  prior  to  his 
father's  death,  he  had  had  charge  of  the  farm,  and 
still  has  the  management  of  the  estate.  The  neat 
and  well-kept  appearance  of  the  place  atte.sts  his 
careful  supen-ision,  and  the  many  improvements 
seen  thereon  add  both  to  its  value  and  attractive- 
ness. 

On  the  6th  of  June,  1893,  Mr.  Reed  was  united 
in  marriage  witli  Mi.ss  Nellie  Wagner,  daughter 
of  Elias  Wagner,  and  a  native  of  DuPage  County, 
where  her  maidenhood  days  were  passed.  The 
>'Oung  couple  are  well  and  favorabl\-  known  in 
the  community  where  they  have  so  long  resided. 
In  politics,  Mr.  Reed  has  been  a  supporter  of  the 
Republican  party  since  casting  his  first  Presiden- 
tial vote  for  Rutherford  B.  Hayes.  The  honors 
or  emoluments  of  public  ofiSce,  however,  have  had 
no  attraction  for  him,  he  preferring  to  devote  his 
entire  time  and  attention  to  his  business  interests, 
in  which  he  lias  been  quite  successful. 


_=] 


"S) 


^-^ 


(TOSEPH  H.  ROSS,  an  enterprising  and  .suc- 
I  cessful  merchant  of  Wayne,  is  a  native  of  the 
G/  Empire  State.  He  was  born  in  Yates  County, 
on  the  15th  of  October,  1843,  ^iid  is  a  son  of 
Thomas  Ross.  The  father  was  born  and  reared 
in  the  same  State,  and  after  attaining  to  mature 
years  wedded  Susan  Plummer,  a  native  of  New 
York.     In  1844  he  brought  his  family  to  Illinois, 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAI'HICAL   RECORD. 


'.VS 


locatiu};  in  l'l;Ui>.  R;iiic  County.  l>ul  llu-  follow 
ing  year  he  entered  laud,  to  which  he  removed, 
and  began  the  development  of  a  farm.  He  added 
to  his  first  purchase  and  made  of  it  a  desirable 
place,  hut  subseijuently  sold  out  and  removed  to 
Elgin,  where  he  liveil  retiretl  for  a  number  of 
years.  His  death  iKxnirred  in  the  winter  of  1S92. 
His  widow  still  sur\ives  him  and  is  living  in 
Elgin  with  her  daughter. 

Mr.  Ross  whose  name  hea<ls  this  reaird  spent 
his  UiyluHxi  and  youth  in  Kane  County  .  and  his 
early  education,  acquired  in  the  common  schools, 
was  sui>i>lemeiite<l  by  three  terms'  attendance  at 
the  Elgin  Academv .  He  was  then  a  student  in 
the  Batavia  Seminary  for  six  months.  When  his 
education  wascoinjiletetl.  he  entered  upon  his  bus- 
iness career  and  began  to  earn  his  own  livelihood 
by  farming  and  dealing  in  stock.  This  pursuit 
'he  followetl  until  i.Sf>6,  when  he  entere<l  the  em- 
ploy of  M.  W.  Dunham,  as  traveling  agent,  be- 
ing thus  engaged  for  aliout  two  years.  He  then 
went  abroad  to  pnrcha.se  horses  in  France,  and 
also  lK)ught  fine  sheep  in  luigland. 

In  the  fall  of  1873  Mr.  Ros,s  was  united  in  mar- 
riage with  Ivlla  Dunham,  daughter  of  Daniel 
Dunham,  whose  sketch  api>ears  elsewhere  in  this 
work.  A  native  of  this  county,  her  maidenhood 
days  were  here  passed,  and  her  education  was  ac- 
quired in  Wlieaton  College.  They  began  their 
domestic  life  upon  a  fann  in  Dul'age  County, 
which  Mr.  Ross  ojK-rated  fur  eight  years.  In 
1.S.S5  he  spent  nine  months  in  Florida,  in  charge 
of  the  bu.siness  of  a  Florida  land  company.  In 
the  winter  of  i.S,S7  he  erected  a  business  house  in 
Wayne,  and  embarked  in  merchandising,  which 
he  has  carried  on  continuously  since.  He  has  a 
full  and  complete  stcx'k  of  general  merchandise, 
and  has  built  uj)  a  large  trade,  which  yields  to 
him  a  good  income.  He  also  Ixiught  four  acres 
of  land  within  the  town  and  erected  u]K)n  it  a  neat 
and  substantial  residence. 

The  home  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Ross  has  lieen 
blessed  with  two  daughters,  Mabel  and  I-'velyn. 
The  familv  is  highly  resjx-cted  an<l  ImUN  an  envi- 
able position  in  social  circles. 

The  Republican  party  finds  in  .Mr.  Ross  a  stal- 
wart   supporter.      He   cast    his    first   Presidential 


vote  for  Abraham  Kincoln  in  iS()4,  hassupi»rted 
each  Presidential  nominee  of  the  party  since,  and 
takes  quite  an  active  part  in  IcK-al  jwUitics.  He 
has  ser\ed  as  Township  Collector  for  two  terms 
and  al.so  as  Constable,  but  has  never  been  a  poli- 
tician in  the  sense  of  office-seeking.  He  pos- 
se.s.scs  gocKl  business  ability  and  the  traits  of  char- 
acter which  in  this  enterprising  nineteenth  cen- 
tury bring  succe.ss.  He  has  therefore  prospered 
and  is  now  numbered  among  the  substantial  citi- 
zens of  the  community. 


^^^ 


-=) 


0A\II<:l  DUNHAM,  a  farmer  residing  on 
section  17,  Wayne  Township,  is  so  well 
known  in  DuPage  County,  that  he  needs 
no  sjjccial  introduction  to  our  readers.  He  came 
to  Illinois  in  1S35,  and  is  niunbere<l  among  the 
pioneer  settlers  of  this  county  of  1842.  He  was 
born  in  Erie  County,  N.  V.,  January  13,  1821, 
and  comes  of  an  old  family  of  Ivnglish  origin, 
which  in  early  Colonial  days  was  foimded  in  the 
I-'niijire  State.  The  father  of  our  subject,  Solo- 
mon Dunham,  was  born  in  Saratoga  County, 
N.  v..  in  1793,  there  grew  to  manhood,  and  in 
1818  was  married  in  Collins,  I'>ie  County,  to 
Lydia  Hallard,  a  native  of  \'ermont,  who  was 
born  and  reared  in  Heiuiington,  and  was  a  daugh- 
ter of  Nathaniel  Hallard.  Solomon  Dunham  was 
a  tanner  and  currier  by  trade,  and  followed  that 
in  coiniection  with  farming  for  a  number  of  years. 
In  1835  he  left  the  l%ast.  and  with  a  team  and 
wagon  brought  his  family  to  Illinois,  locating  in 
Kane  County,  where  he  entere<l  four  hundred 
acres  of  land.  There  he  develope<l  a  nice  farm 
and  reared  his  family.  He  was  a  man  gf  good 
education  and  excellent  business  ability.  He  un- 
(lersttMKl  surveying,  and  did  that  line  of  work  in 
both  Kane  and  DuPage  Counties.  He  aided  in 
the  organization  J>f  Kane  County,  which  then  cm- 
braced  De  Kalb  County,  and  was  one  of  its  first 
County  Connnissioners.  He  was  also  one  o{  the 
first  As.sessors.  He  ttx>k  quite  an  active  part  in 
]><»litics,  and  serve<l  as  a  delegate  to  lx)th  County 
and   State   Conventions.      His  death   cKXiirred  in 


136 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


April,  1865,  and  his  wife  passed  away  in  1857. 
Their  remains  were  interred  in  Little  Woods 
Cemeter\',  where  a  neat  marble  monument  has 
been  erected  to  their  memor>-. 

The  Dunham  family  numljered  the  following 
children:  Betsy,  deceased,  wife  of  Ira  Albro;  Dan- 
iel, of  this  sketch;  Harriet,  wife  of  M.  W.  Fletch- 
er, of  Kane  County,  who  served  as  the  first 
County  Clerk  of  that  county;  Cordelia,  wife  of 
Peter  Pratt:  Jane,  wife  of  Daniel  Stearns;  Julia, 
who  died  at  the  age  of  sixteen:  Helen,  who  be- 
came the  second  wife  of  Daniel  Stearns;  Emma, 
widow  of  Robert  Carswell,  of  Wayne  Township: 
and  M.  W.,  a  breeder  and  dealer  in  imported 
horses. 

The  subject  of  our  sketch  was  a  lad  of  fourteen 
when  he  came  with  his  parents  to  Illinois,  and  he 
was  reared  in  Kane  County.  His  education  was 
acquired  in  Mt.  Morris  Seminary,  and  after  com- 
pleting his  studies  he  returned  to  the  farm.  In 
1842  he  located  upon  the  farm  which  has  now 
been  his  home  for  half  a  century.  He  first 
bought  three  hundred  acres,  upon  which  not  a 
furrow  had  been  turned  or  an  improvement  made, 
and  he  now  owns  a  valuable  and  desirable  prop- 
erty. The  land  is  highly  cultivated,  there  is  a  large 
and  substantial  residence,  and  his  very  fine  and 
commodious  barns  and  outbuildings  were  models 
of  convenience,  but  were  destroyed  by  fire,  to- 
gether with  their  contents,  excepting  the  horses, 
on  the  night  of  October  8,  1893.  For  a  number 
of  years  Mr.  Dunham  engaged  in  the  dairy  bu.si- 
ness,  and  in  1870  he  began  dealing  in  Percheron 
horses,  which  he  has  since  been  importing  and 
breeding.  He  is  wideh-  known  as  a  dealer  in 
thorough-bred  Percheron  horses,  and  owns  some 
valuable  ones. 

In  1853  Mr.  Dunham  was  married  in  DuPage 
County  to  Olive  K.,  a  daughter  of  Edward  Hath- 
away, one  of  the  honored  pioneers  of  this 
count)'.  She  was  born  in  Steuben  County, 
N.  Y.,  spent  .seven  years  in  St.  Louis,  and  was 
educated  in  that  city  and  in  Monticello,  111.  Four 
children  have  been  born  of  this  union:  Ellen,  wife 
of  J.  H.  Ross,  a  merchant  of  Wayne;  Flora,  wife  of 
C.  P.  Dewey,  a  banker  of  Toulon,  111. ;  Julia, 
wife  of  Walter  V.  R.  Powis,   an  editor  and  pub- 


lisher of  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.;  and  May,  wife  of  W. 
J.  Yoder,  a  civil  engineer  and  railroad  man. 

Mr.  Dunham  proudly  cast  his  finst  Presiden- 
tial vote  for  Martin  Van  Buren  in  1842,  and  has 
.since  .supported  each  candidate  of  the  Democratic 
party.  He  has  been  elected  and  served  for  six 
years  as  Supervisor  of  Wayne  Township,  and  has 
been  a  member  of  the  County  Board  of  Super- 
visors. He  has  spent  almost  his  entire  life  in 
this  community,  and  has  witnessed  the  growth 
and  development  of  the  county,  in  whose  up- 
building he  has  taken  a  just  pride  and  commend- 
able interest.  His  career  has  been  a  busy  and 
useful  one,  and  it  has  also  been  crowned  with 
success,  his  labors  bringing  him  in  a  good  in- 
come, which  now  numbers  him  among  the  .sub- 
stantial citizens  of  the  communitv. 


(S_ 


1^+^ 


S^ 


~a 


el 


JOSEPH  W.  SMITH,  deceased,  was  born  in 
Cazenovia,  Madison  County,  N.  Y. ,  April 
30,  18 1 2,  and  was  a  son  of  Spencer  and  Sarah 
(Williams)  Smith.  The  father  was  a  native  of 
New  York,  and  of  Scotch  and  Welsh  descent. 
His  birth  occurred  September  28,  1781,  and 
throughout  his  business  career  he  followed  farm- 
ing in  the  Empire  State.  He  died  near  Roches- 
ter, N.  Y.,  when  in  the  prime  of  life.  His  wife 
survived  him  many  years.  She  was  a  nati\-e  of 
Vermont,  and  was  of  FCnglish  lineage.  Born 
July  4,  1780,  she  pas.sed  away  April  26,  1863,  at 
the  age  of  eighty-two  years  and  ten  months. 
Both  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Smith  were  members  of  the 
Congregational  Church.  The  maternal  grand- 
father, Joseph  Williams,  was  a  hero  of  the  Revo- 
lution and  died  in  Cazenovia,  when  almost  one 
hundred  years  of  age. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was  quite  young 
when  his  father  died,  and  he  was  reared  by  his 
grandfather  Williams.  His  education  was  ac- 
quired in  the  public  schools,  and  when  a  young 
man  he  learned  the  cooper's  trade,  and  after- 
ward that  of  blacksmithing.  On  the  2 2d  of 
October,  1833,  he  married  Miss  Eliza  Ann,  a 
daughter  of  Moses  and  Hannah  (Kinney)  Lewis, 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL    RKCORD. 


'^7 


natives  ut  New  York.  When  her  gr;ui<lfather 
was  a  boy,  his  pet>pU-  renu>v«r<l  to  Galloway, 
where  his  parents  diwl  when  he  was  quite  young. 
He  was  then  taken  hy  a  nei^hlxir  atul  put  to 
work,  but.  Uinn  mistreate*!,  he  ran  away  and 
ctimmencetl  workinj;  for  a  man  who  built  a  ver>- 
large  house  ami  owneJ  an  extensive  fami.  Of 
thus  property  Mr.  Lewis,  as  the  result  of  his  in- 
dustr>-,  eventually  became  ownier.  Five  children 
were  Iwrn  to  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Smith.  SiKiicer  D. 
marrieii  Sarah  Battles,  who  tiied  al>«>ut  1874, 
leaving  two  children:  Sadie  L.  and  Pearl  V. 
Frances  is  the  wife  of  D.  C.  Stanley,  of  Downer's 
Grove,  and  they  have  four  daughters:  Cora  Lil- 
lian, Bertlia  Irene,  Allie  Adele  and  Del  Capron. 
Maria  H.  and  Lewis  M.  are  lx>th  deceased.  Al- 
lie A.,  who  completes  the  family,  is  the  wife  of  \V. 
\V.  Gokey,  of  Tunier,  who  is  a  pa.ssenger  con- 
ductor on  the  Galena  Di\ision  of  the  Northwest- 
ern Railroad.  Three  children  have  been  bom 
unto  them:  Josie  S.,  Spencer  and  Theresa  C. 

From  New  York  Mr.  Smith  removed  to  Ma- 
rengo, where  he  made  his  home  for  two  years. 
going  then  to  Albion.  Mich.,  where  he  spent  a 
numlxrr  of  years.  During  that  time  he  served  as 
Sheriff  of  the  county  for  one  term.  His  next 
place  of  residence  was  in  Jackson.  Mich.,  where 
he  spent  alxjut  a  year  and  a-half  when  he  re- 
turned to  Albion.  After  a  short  time,  however, 
he  went  to  Michigan  City,  where  he  had  charge 
of  the  railroad  shops.  The  year  iSj.s  witnessed 
his  arrival  in  Turner.  He  worked  in  the  shops 
of  this  place  until  the  breaking  out  of  the  war, 
when,  in  1.S64,  he  enlisteii  in  the  one  hundred 
days'  ser\-ice,  but  c<.>ntinued  with  the  Ujys  in  blue 
for  eight  months. 

After  the  war  Mr.  Smith  worke<l  in  the  railroad 
shops  at  Belvidere  for  a  year,  his  family,  how- 
e\-er,  remainijig  in  Turner,  where  he  then  joined 
them.  For  a  short  time  he  was  enjployed  in  a 
rolling-niill.  In  1X72  he  was  appointed  Postmas- 
ter, and  served  for  about  thirteen  years.  While 
in  that  jxisition  he  went  to  Ft.  Atkinson  on  a 
visit,  and  when  there  died  from  apoi>le.\y,  Sep- 
temlier  9,  1.SH4,  at  the  age  of  seventy -two.  He 
was  a  memlier  of  the  Metluxiist  Kpisct)pal  Church, 
of  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  and  in  pol- 


itics was  a  .stanch  Rejiuhluaii.  He  wa--  .ii\\,»>s 
found  tr\ic  to  even,  trust  rejKiseti  in  him,  and 
wherever  he  went  he  gained  the  high  regard  of 
all  with  whom  business  or  social  relations 
brought  him  in  contact.  His  death  was  deeply 
regretted  by  niany  friends  outside  of  hLs  immedi 
ate  family.  Mrs.  Smith  was  Ixfni  June  19,  1.S12, 
and  is  still  living  at  the  age  of  eighty  one.  She 
makes  her  home  in  Tunier,  where  .she  has  a 
good  residence,  and  where  she  is  surrounded  by 
many  friends  and  aciiuaintances.  Her  father, 
Moses  Lewis,  was  for  many  years  a  member  of 
the  Mastmic  fraternity,  and  attained  the  Royal 
Arch  degree.  Mrs.  Smith  still  has  in  her  jxjs- 
session  the  apron  of  that  degree  which  was 
worn  by  her  father,  and  it  is  now  upward  of  one 
hundred  vears  old. 


"^) 


l^-f^l 


G\  l.HlikT  H.  WIANT  is  the  Circuit  Clerk  of 
r  I  DuPage  County,  is  popular  as  a  jK>litician, 
I  I  and  is  a  resident  of  Turner.  His  father,  one 
of  the  earliest  pioneers  of  the  county,  ser\ed  in 
the  Union  cause  during  the  Civil  War,  and  has 
been  actively  connected  with  the  upbuilding  of 
Turner  Junction.  The  birth  of  our  subject  oc- 
curred in  Wayne.  DuPage  County.  111..  Decem- 
ber 2,  1841 . 

Joel  and  Rhola  Wiant.  the  parents  of  our  sub- 
ject, were  both  nati\es  of  Pennsylvania,  and 
were  numbered  among  the  early  settlers  of  this 
county,  to  which  they  came  at  an  early  day. 
The  father  is  still  living  in  Wayne  Township, 
and  is  now  more  than  eighty  years  of  age.  His 
wife  died  many  years  ago.  leaving  two  sons  and 
two  daughters,  namely:  Albert  H.;  Thomas;  Ju- 
lia, now  Mrs.  Chandler,  of  Turner;  and  Alice, 
wife  of  Edgar  Stephens,  also  a  resident  of  the 
same  j)lace. 

Albert  H.  Wiant  grew  to  manhcM>d  on  his 
father's  pioneer  fann  in  Wayne  Towiiship.  where 
he  was  bom.  He  ha<l  the  a<lvantages  of  tlie  com- 
mon schools,  in  addition  to  which  he  was  for  a 
while  enrolled  as  a  student  of  Wheaton  College. 
His   studies,    however,    were   interrupted    l>y   the 


138 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


war,  and  he  responded  to  the  call  for  volunteers, 
in  July,  1862,  going  to  the  defense  of  the  Old 
Flag,  and  being  mustered  into  Company  B,  One 
Hundred  and  Fifth  Illinois  Infantn,-,  on  the  2d  of 
September  of  that  year,  at  Dixon.  This  company 
was  raised  in  DuPage  County,  and  was  enlisted 
for  a  period  of  three  years,  or  until  the  close  of 
the  war.  After  being  drilled  at  Dixon,  they  were 
sent  to  Camp  Douglas,  and  thence  to  the  front 
of  battle.  After  participating  in  the  engagement 
at  Resaca,  they  were  sent  on  the  Atlanta  cam- 
paign with  Sherman,  and  then  to  the  sea.  Our 
subject  was  present  at  the  grand  Military  Re\-iew 
in  Washington,  and  was  mustered  out  in  the 
Capitol  City  on  the  7th  of  June,  1865. 

On  his  return  from  southern  battle-fields  to  his 
home  in  Turner,  Mr.  Wiant,  in  company  with 
his  brother,  engaged  in  general  merchandising  in 
that  place,  and  continued  successfully  employed 
for  thirteen  years.  For  a  short  time  before  the 
war,  he  had  been  in  the  same  business  with  his 
father  in  Turner,  and  it  was  then  that  he  ac- 
quired a  practical  knowledge  of  business  methods. 
Under  Gen.  Grant's  finst  administration,  he  was 
appointed  Postmaster  of  Turner,  but  his  time  be- 
ing fully  occupied  with  his  business  affairs,  he  re- 
signed in  favor  of  one  of  his  comrades  in  the  war, 
Joseph  Smith.  President  Hayes  also  bestowed 
honor  upon  him  by  appointing  him  to  the  posi- 
tion of  United  States  Gauger.  He  has  held  other 
important  positions  of  honor  and  trust,  and  has 
always  proved  a  thoroughly  responsible  and  satis- 
factory officer.  In  1888  he  was  elected  to  the 
office  of  Circuit  Clerk,  in  which  capacity  he  has 
efficiently  served  ever  since,  being  re-elected  in 
1892. 

In  187 1  Mr.  Wiant  married  Miss  Ella  Haffey, 
of  Turner,  and  by  their  union  has  been  born  one 
child,  Lester  A.,  who  is  his  father's  assistant  in 
the  office  of  Circuit  Clerk.  Fraternally,  our  sub- 
ject is  a  member  of  the  Grand  Armj-  of  the  Re- 
public, and  helped  to  organize  the  first  po.st  in 
DuPage  County,  it  being  known  as  Turner  Post 
No.  301,  and  the  charter  being  granted  by  John 
M.  Palmer.  Our  subject  belongs  to  Turner 
Chapter,  and  to  Bethel  Commandery,  of  El- 
gin.     He  is  the  owner  of  a  small  subdivision  of 


Turner,  and  resides  on  a  piece  of  that  property. 
He  is  well  and  favorably  known  in  Ma.sonic  and 
Grand  Army  circles,  and  is  very  popular  in  the 
various  walks  of  life.  He  is  recognized  as  a  man 
of  unbiased  integrity  and  honor,  and  has  always 
had  deeph-  at  heart  the  prosperity  of  his  city. 


-^. 


"=) 


^-^ 


[S_ 


c=~ 


N 


ON.  F.  H.  MATHER  is  well  known  to  the 
citizens  of  Du  Page  County,  being  one  of  the 
early  settlers  of  Milton  Township,  where  he 
located  in  May,  1852.  He  is  now  living  a  re- 
tired life  in  Wheaton,  enjoying  the  rest  which  he 
has  so  truly  earned  and  richly  deserves.  He  was 
born  in  Benson,  Rutland  County,  Vt.,  and  is  of 
English  lineage,  being  descended  from  one  of 
three  brothers  who  came  to  America  from  Eng- 
land in  early  Colonial  days,  and  settled  in  Boston, 
Mass.  One  of  his  ancestors  was  in  the  famous 
Bo.ston  '  'Tea  Party. ' '  The  grandfather  of  our  sub- 
ject lived  and  died  in  Connecticut.  His  father. 
Demos  Mather,  was  born  in  Sharon,  Conn.,  and 
after  his  marriage  removed  to  Benson,  Vt.  He 
was  a  black.smith  by  trade,  and  also  engaged  in 
farming,  owning  two  hundred  acres  of  good  land. 
His  wife,  who  bore  the  maiden  name  of  Louisa 
Maxam,  was  also  born  in  the  Nutmeg  State.  By 
this  union  they  became  the  parents  of  ten  children, 
six  of  whom  grew  to  manhood  and  womanhood. 
George,  who  was  a  mechanic,  died  in  the  Green 
Mountain  State  at  the  age  of  seventy-seven  years. 
Ira  N.,  a  farmer  of  De  Kalb  County,  111.,  died  at 
the  age  of  seventy-six.  The  others  who  reached 
mature  years  are  Cynthia  Ann,  Frederick  H., 
Laura  and  Cornelia. 

Mr.  Mather  who.se  name  heads  this  record  was 
born  March  17,  1819,  and  his  early  days  were 
passed  in  Vermont,  where  he  acquired  such  edu- 
cation as  the  common  schools  afforded.  He  was 
reared  to  manhood  upon  the  home  farm,  but  when 
about  twenty-one  years  of  age,  his  health  failed 
him,  and  he  started  westward  with  the  hope  that 
a  change  might  prove  beneficial.  In  1841,  he  ar- 
rived in  DuPage  County,  where  he  .spent  the 
summer,  returning  to  the  Green  Mountain  State 


PORTRAIT  AND  HIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


1.^9 


ill  the  suixxx-iliiij;  aiitumii.  He  \va>  inarn«.-<l  May 
23,  1S42,  to  Miss  RIkxI a  Iv  Mivham.  <>|"  Riitlan<l 
County,  Vt.,  a  daughter  of  David  an<l  Rhotia 
(  Park  hill)  Mwhain,  the  foniicr  a  native  of  Will 
iamstown,  Mass..  and  the  latter  of  Wnuont.  Her 
}>atenial  grandfather  was  one  of  the  heroes  of  the 
Revolutionary  War.  Her  father  w.is  injuri-<l  by 
nniaway  horses,  and  therefore  could  not  enlist. 

I'pon  returning  to  DuPage  County  with  his 
bride.  Mr.  Mather  jntrchasetl  a  fami  of  eighty 
acres  of  prairie  land  and  eight  acres  of  iinil>er  in 
Milton  To«Tiship.  There  he  livetl  in  true  pioneer 
style.  exiK-rieiicing  all  the  privations  and  hard- 
ships of  the  frontier.  He  broke  the  sod  with  oxen, 
also  hauled  his  farm  products  to  market  in  that 
way.  and  took  his  bri<le  buggy-riding  Ix-hiiid  a 
yoke  of  lx)vines.  His  first  crop,  consi.stijig  of 
wheat  and  oats,  wxs  raised  in  1843.  The  follow- 
ing year  he  raised  one  hundred  bushels  of  wheat 
on  a  three-acre  tract  of  land.  His  industrious 
and  indefatigable  labors  brought  to  Mr.  Mather 
prosperity  as  the  years  advancetl.  and  he  is  now 
one  of  the  affluent  citizens  of  the  community. 

His  fellow-citizens,  recognizing  his  worth  and 
ability,  have  frequenth-  calle<l  upian  our  subject  to 
ser\e  in  official  j)ositions.  l-'or  three  successive 
years  he  was  Sui)er\'i.sor,  and  in  i860  was  elected 
to  the  State  I^-.ijislature  on  the  Republican  ticket, 
having  the  distinction  of  being  the  first  Republi- 
can Legislator  in  the  Illinois  House  from  DuPage 
County.  He  introduced  the  bill  into  the  House 
which  chartered  Wheaton  College  with  twenty- 
one  members.  Before  that  time  the  school  was 
known  as  the  Illinois  Institute.  Mr.  Mather  was 
electe<l  Trustee  of  the  college  at  the  time  of  its 
organization.  His  first  tenn  expired  in  1S65,  and 
he  was  re-electe<l  in  i.*<65,  1875  and  18S5,  for 
terms  of  ten  years  each.  He  was  ver\-  active  in 
restoring  Wheaton  College,  or,  in  other  words, 
building  it  up  from  the  ruins  of  the  Illinois  Insti- 
tute, and  is  now  justly  jiroud  that  the  sch'K)l  is 
established  on  a  firm  financial  l)a.sis.  In  an  extra 
.session  of  the  lA-gislature  in  May,  1861,  Mr.  Ma- 
ther aided  in  pas.sing  many  needed  war  measures. 
He  hxs  ever  Ixitrn  prominent  in  the  promotion  of 
interests  calculated  to  prove  of  public  l)enefit.  and 
may  take  just  pridi-  in   tin-   fm-t  that  Illinois  lias 


l)ei"ome  one  of  the  foremost  .stales  in  ilie  I  iiion. 
with  a  metropolis  which  is  clas.sed  among  the 
largest  cities  on  the  globe,  and  which  hxs  l»een 
built  up  within  his  own  recollection. 

For  a  nuniW-r  of  years  .Mr.  .Mather  wasengagetl 
in  wtx)l-buying  and  in  raising  sheep  for  wtK>l.  He 
also  dealt  ijuite  exten.sivelv  in  h<tg>  and  cattle, 
and  is  well  known  throughout  the  country  xs  a 
stock-dealer.  At  one  time  he  ownetl  seven  hun- 
dre<l  and  fifty  acres  of  land,  and  still  has  five  hun- 
dred and  thirty-five  acres.  In  iS-j2.  he  was  made 
general  manager  for  the  Sweet  &  Childs  Ranch, 
of  which  he  remainetl  in  charge  one-year.  .Mr. 
Mather  baughl  wixtl  in  Coloratlo  Springs  and 
Pueblo,  Colo.,  and  in  New  Mexico  for  se\-eral 
years.  He  is  a  man  of  most  e.xcellent  business 
and  exec-utive  ability,  ami  has  therefore  won  a 
high  degree  of  success  in  his  undertakings.  Hon- 
orable and  upright  in  all  things,  his  wortl  is  as 
good  as  his  bund.  He  is  generous  to  a  fault, 
charitable  and  warm-hearted,  and  it  is  therefore 
not  strange  that  he  is  surrounde<l  by  a  host  of 
warm  friends.  The  county  owes  to  hira  a  debt  of 
gratitude  for  the  part  he  has  played  in  its  upbuild- 
ing. His  name  is  inseparably  connected  with  its 
history,  and  this  sketch  deser\-es  an  honored  place 
in  Thk  Rkcoki). 


_=] 


^-f^l 


[S_ 


=*=m^T^m=*= 


_9 


0AXII:L  STIRKS  WARNE,  one  of  the  hon- 
ied pioneers  of  the  county,  who  now  resides 
on  section  2y,  Winfield  Township,  is  a  na- 
tive of  Mansfield,  N.J.  He  was  lK)rn  Dccenil)er 
8,  1820.  and  when  a  lad  of  twelve  .summers  went 
with  his  parents  to  Michigan.  In  1834,  became 
with  the  family  to  DuPage  County,  where  he  has 
since  made  his  home.  His  educational  privileges 
were  limiteil.  He  attendeil  a  subscrijilion  school 
held  in  a  log  house,  but  is  almost  entirely  self- 
educate<l.  On  starting  out  in  life  for  himself,  he 
purcha.setl  ninety  acres  of  land  on  .section  29.  Win- 
field  Townshij),  for  5250,  and  erected  a  small  frame 
house.  He  then  purcha.sed  a  pair  of  oxen  for 
564.  an<l  IxTgan  the  development  of  a  farm.  He 
lal»<)re<l  enrl\  and  Lite    anil  as  the   vears   jiassed. 


I40 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


acre  after  acre  of  his  land  was  placed  under  the 
plow,  and  in  course  of  time  yielded  to  him  a  good 
income. 

Upon  his  first  farm,  ]\Ir.  Warne  made  his  home 
until  iS8o,  when  he  removed  to  his  present  farm. 
It  is  one  of  the  finest  improved  places  in  the  town- 
ship, and.  together  with  his  .son,  he  owns  six  hun- 
dred and  forty-five  acres  of  valuable  land.  At 
present  he  is  li\-ing  retired  from  active  business,  yet 
although  he  is  now  seventy-two  years  of  age,  he 
can  do  a  day's  work  almost  as  well  as  a  man  in 
his  prime.  He  has  many  interesting  stories  to 
tell  of  pioneer  life  and  his  exploits  with  the  In- 
dians here  in  an  early  day.  He  has  hauled  many 
a  load  of  grain  to  Chicago,  and  can  remember 
Napen'ille  when  it  contained  only  two  log  cabins, 
while  the  towns  of  Turner  and  Warreuville  had 
not  yet  sprung  into  existence.  There  was  not  a 
woman  living  in  Aurora,  and  only  three  men. 

On  the  yth  of  February,  1849,  Mr.  Warne  wed- 
ded Miss  Hannah  Bartholomew,  a  daughter  of 
Thomas  and  Sophia  (Jones)  Bartholomew,  and  a 
native  of  Washington  Count}-,  X.  Y.  They  be- 
came parents  of  two  children:  Sarah,  wife  of  Ed- 
ward McFerrin,  a  farmer  of  Winfield  Township, 
by  whom  she  has  three  children,  Leslie,  La  Fa}-- 
ette  and  Daniel:  and  Samuel  H.,  who  has  charge 
of  his  father's  business  interests.  He  married 
Nettie  Bartholomew,  and  they  liave  had  three 
children,  Johnnie,  Grace  and  Sena.  The  two  lat- 
ter died  of  diphtheria,  after  a  few  days'  sickness, 
in  November,  1S93. 

In  accordance  with  his  views  on  the  temperance 
question,  Mr.  Warne  votes  with  the  Prohibition 
party.  He  gives  his  support  to  all  public  enter- 
prises, and  has  been  a  worthy  and  \alued  citizen 
since  the  early  day  in  which  he  came  to  DuPage 
Count}-.  He  is  not  only  an  honored  pioneer,  but 
is  also  a  self-made  man,  whose  success  has  been 
achieved  through  his  own  efforts,  for  he  started 
out  in  life  empty-handed  and  has  worked  his  waj- 
upward  by  perseverance  and  industr}%  overcom- 
ing all  the  obstacles  in  his  path  by  good  manage- 
ment. In  1878,  Mr.  Warne  took  a  trip  across  the 
Atlantic,  visited  the  Exposition  in  Paris,  and 
traveled  through  Belgium,  France  and  England. 
He  pleasantly  spent  a  number  of  weeks  in   this 


way,  and  .saw  many  interesting  places  and  people, 
but  he  returned  still  well  pleased  with  America  and 
DuPage  County,  for  the  home  where  he  has  so 
long  resided  is  dear  to  him  and  he  cares  for  no 
other. 

b         '       ■"  [=J  •<"  T '  >■  [^"^  S 

|~REDERICK  MARQUARDT,  who  is  now 
r^  engaged  in  the  real-estate  business  in  Lom- 
I  bard,  is  a  native  of  Germany,  born  in  Han- 
over November  4,  1839.  His  paternal  grand- 
father, Henry  Marquardt,  came  to  America  in 
1845,  and  died  in  DuPage  County,  about  1847, 
when  seventy  years  of  age.  Throughout  his  life 
he  followed  fanning,  and  had  a  family  of  two  sons 
and  two  daughters.  The  maternal  grandfather 
spent  his  entire  life  in  Germany.  The  parents  of 
our  subject,  Henry  and  Sophia  (Weber)  Mar- 
quardt, were  also  natives  of  German}-,  and  the 
father  was  an  agriculturist.  Crossing  the  Atlan- 
tic, he  landed  in  America  on  the  i8th  of  August, 
1845,  and,  coming  West,  located  in  Bloomingdale 
Township,  DuPage  County,  where  he  purchased 
a  farm  of  eighty  acres,  to  which  he  added,  un- 
til at  the  time  of  his  death  he  had  five  hundred 
and  fifteen  acres,  which  he  gave  to  his  children. 
He  passed  away  in  1879,  at  the  age  of  sixty-six 
years.  His  wife  sur\-ived  him  until  1892,  and  was 
called  to  her  final  rest  at  the  age  of  eighty-seven. 
They  were  members  of  the  Lutheran  Church. 
Their  family  numbered  six  children,  five  sons  and 
a  daughter:  Frederick,  Henr}-,  William,  Herman, 
Louis,  and  Sophia,  who  is  now  the  wife  of  Henry 
Tonne. 

Mr.  Marquardt  whose  name  heads  this  record 
was  a  lad  of  onh-  six  summers  when  his  parents 
crossed  the  Atlantic  to  America,  and  upon  his 
father's  farm  in  DuPage  County  he  was  reared 
to  manhood.  He  acquired  a  good  English  edu- 
cation in  the  common  schools  and  remained  under 
the  parental  roof  until  he  had  attained  his  major- 
ity. When  he  had  reached  man's  estate  his 
father  aided  him  to  make  a  start  in  life,  and  he 
continued  farming  on  his  own  account  until  1 880, 
when  he  abandoned  that  pursuit  to  enter  commer- 
cial circles.     He   was   then    engaged  in  general 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL    RKCORD. 


'41 


iiRTchatulisinj;  al  Lombani  fr<>ni  iS.So  until  the 
spring  of  189.^.  when  he  lKx-;nne  a  dealer  in  real 
estate. 

On  the  3th  of  June.  1S74.  .Mr.  MarquanU  wa-s 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  U>ui.sa  Knigge,  a 
daughter  of  Frederick  and  Man,-  (  Knust  1  Knigge. 
Six  children  gratvti  this  union,  three  s»>ns  and 
three  daughters,  namely:  Clara.  Julius.  Paul- 
ina. Theodore,  Alma  and  Frederick.  Julius  and  | 
Paulina  are  now  deceased.  The  iwrents  are  both 
members  of  the  Lutheran  Church. 

In  politics,  Mr.  Marquardt  is  a  supporter  of 
Democratic  principles  and  he  has  Ikx'h  hunored 
by  election  to  office.  He  was  Suix?r\ist>rof  York 
TowTiship,  filling  the  oflSce  f<)r  four  years,  and  at  j 
the  present  time  is  Coniniis-sioner  of  Highways. 
He  now  owns  one  hundred  and  sixt\-  acres  of  good 
land  in  Bloomingdale  Township,  which  yields  a 
good  income,  besides  considerable  property  in 
Lomliard.  His  life  has  been  well  and  worthily 
spent,  and  he  has  the  high  regard  of  all  who 
know  him. 


EHARLIvS  HEMKNWAY,  who  is  engaged  in 
general  fanning  on  section  22.  Wayne  Town- 
.ship,  well  deserves  mention  among  the  hon- 
ored pioneers  of  the  county,  for  he  here  located  in 
1S36,  and  has  been  prominently  identified  with 
the  growth  and  development  of  the  community 
since  that  time.  He  has  watched  with  interest 
the  progress  and  advancement  of  the  county,  and 
has  ever  borne  his  part  in  promoting  its  l)est  in- 
terests. 

Mr.  Hemenway  was  lx)m  in  Williamsburg. 
Hampshire  County.  Mass.,  May  12,  1S15.  and  is  a 
son  of  Elijah  and  Ann  (Budlongi  Hemenway,  the 
fomur  a  native  of  Ma.ssachu.setts,  and  the  latter  of 
the  Empire  State.  The  father  wxs  bom  in  1781. 
and  was  a  farmer  in  his  native  State.  In  Sejv 
temlier,  iX^^ft,  he  emigrated  westward  and  joineil 
his  son  in  DuPage  County,  where  he  spent  the 
la-st  years  of  his  life,  dying  in  186^,  at  the  ad- 
vanced age  of  eighty -one  years.  His  wife  pa.s.sed 
away    in   August,    i860,   and  they  He  buried  in 


\\'a\ne  Cemetery,  where  a  111.11  hk-  -.lui  ii.i>  i><.-cn 
erected  to  their  memon, .  The  grandfatlier,  Ich- 
alKxl  Hemenway,  was  a  Revolutionary  hero  and 
servetl  in  the  Iwttle  of  Saratoga.  Vynn\  the  old 
home  farm  in  this  county,  Gen  So>tt  camj)e»i  with 
his  army  in  the  Black  Hawk  War.  and  several 
soldiers  are  burieii  at  this  place. 

Mr.  Hemenway  whose  name  heads  this  record 
was  reared  in  the  State  of  his  nativity.  He  is 
one  of  a  family  of  two  sons  and  two  daughters, 
all  of  whom  grew  to  mature  years,  though  he  is 
jiow  the  only  sur\ivor.  His  educational  privi- 
leges were  those  aflTordetl  by  the  common  schools. 
When  a  young  man  he  came  to  the  West,  in  18.^6, 
and  ca.st  in  his  lot  with  the  pioneer  settlers  of  Du 
Page  County,  where  l>e  made  a  claim,  purchasing 
it  of  the  Goveniment  when  the  land  came  into 
market.  It  was  a  tract  of  one  hundred  and  sixty 
acres,  and  with  characteristic  energy  he  began  to 
plow  and  plant  the  same,  trajisfomiing  it  into  a 
good  farm.  From  time  to  time  he  has  made 
other  purchases.  On  coming  West,  he  did  his 
trading  at  Chicago,  then  a  town  of  alxiut  ft)ur 
thou-sand  inhabitants.  He  had  many  hardships 
and  difficulties  to  overcome,  yet  he  has  fjeen  one 
of  the  successful  farmers  of  the  county,  and  now 
owns  one  hundred  and  eight  acres  of  valuable 
land,  which  yields  to  him  a  g<HKl  iuctime.  The 
rest  of  his  property  he  has  sold,  as  he  did  not  wish 
to  have  the  care  of  so  much  land. 

On  the  3d  of  July,  1844.  Mr.  Hemenway  mar- 
ried Miss  Lucy  W.  Fay.  a  native  of  .Mas.sachu.setts. 
who  when  thirteen  years  of  age  went  to  Wiscon- 
sin. After  one  season  spent  in  Racine,  she  came 
to  Illinois.  Mrs.  Hemenway  dietl  March  6,  1864, 
and  was  interred  in  Wayne  Cemeter>-.  where  a 
marble  slab  marks  her  la.st  resting-place.  She 
was  a  lady  of  superior  intelligence,  highly  e<lu- 
cated,  and  for  some  time  prior  to  her  marriage 
succes-sfully  engagetl  in  teaching.  Her  loss  was 
deeply  moume<l  throughout  the  community.  Nine 
children  were  l)orn  unto  them:  Charles,  who  is 
marrietl  and  fiJlows  fanning  in  Anteloj>e  County, 
Neb.:  I'restxitt.  who  is  also  a  farmer  of  the  same 
county;  Mayliew  M.,  an  agriculturist  of  Nebraska; 
Eda  L. ,  a  teacher  and  farmer  of  Orchard.  Neb.: 
Martha    wifinfM    \'    Swit/er    a  fanner  of  .\nte- 


142 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


lope  County,  Neb.:  Man*,  wife  of  Dudley  Tay- 
lor, also  a  farmer  of  Nebraska;  and  the  three 
deceased:  Horace,  who  died  at  the  age  of  twenty- 
one;  Franklin,  who  died  at  the  age  of  three;  and 
Clara,  who  died  in  infancy. 

Mr.  HemenwaN-  was  again  married,  in  Decem- 
ber. 1867,  his  second  union  being  with  Mrs.  Julia 
Mitcheson,  a  native  of  England,  and  the  only 
daughter  of  Thomas  Copeland,  a  wealthy  gentle- 
man of  Barton,  Lincolnshire,  England.  She  was 
there  reared  and  educated,  and  became  the  wife 
of  William  Mitcheson,  who  crossed  the  Atlantic 
to  America,  locating  first  in  Rochester,  N.  Y., 
whence  he  went  to  Aurora,  111.,  where  his 
death  occurred.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Mitcheson  had 
five  children,  but  only  one  is  now  living,  Robert, 
who  carries  on  the  Hemenway  farm.  By  the 
second  union  has  been  born  a  daughter,  Lucy, 
wife  of  George  Judd,  of  Elgin,  111.,  an  intelligent 
and  cultured  lady. 

Mr.  Hemenwaj^  was  formerly  an  old-line  Whig 
but  joined  the  Republican  part>-  on  its  organiza- 
tion, and  has  supported  each  Presidential  candi- 
date. He  takes  a  warm  interest  in  the  cause  of 
education  and  is  a  stanch  supporter  of  the  public 
schools,  for  which  he  has  done  effective  .ser\-ice 
while  a  member  of  the  School  Board.  He  and 
his  wife  are  members  of  the  Congregational 
Church,  and  are  prominent  in  religious  and  be- 
nevolent work.  Mr.  Hemenway  has  witnessed 
the  development  of  the  county  for  fift3--.seven 
years  and  has  helped  to  make  it  what  it  is  to-day, 
one  of  the  best  in  the  great  State  of  Illinois.  He 
is  a  man  of  tried  integrity  and  uprightness  of 
character,  and  he  and  his  estimable  wife  are  held 
in  high  regard. 


I^H^[ 


I  EONARD  EDWIN  De  WOLF,  attorney-at- 
I  C  law  and  Justice  of  the  Peace,  of  Wheaton, 
I  V  was  born  in  Towanda,  Bradford  County,  Pa., 
March  18,  1840,  and  is  a  son  of  Lynian  E.  and 
Matilda  (Pratt)  DeWolf  In  an  early  day  the 
family  removed  to  Chicago,  b\-  way  of  the  Great 
Lakes  and  Erie  Canal.     The  father  was  an  attor- 


ney, who  in  later  years  became  well  known  as  a 
chancery  lawyer,  and  was  engaged  on  the  cele- 
brated Farm  Mortgage  Cases  against  the  Racine 
&  Mi.ssissippi  Railroad  Company,  so  well  known 
among  the  early  settlers  of  Northern  Illinois. 
His  clear  perception  and  fine  legal  mind,  com- 
bined with  rare  faculties  as  a  writer,  fitted  him 
admirably  for  his  .sphere  in  life.  Although  the)' 
have  never  been  largely  circulated,  his  works  on 
the  Great  W^estern  Railroad  cases  and  finance  are 
of  great  merit.  Mr.  DeWolf  was  well  known  to 
the  residents  of  Wheaton,  having  li\'ed  in  this 
city  many  j-ears  prior  to  his  death,  although  he 
was  living  in  Chicago  at  the  time  of  his  demise,  in 
1889,  at  the  age  of  .seventy-four  years.  Mrs. 
DeWolf  pa.ssed  away  in  Chicago  in  1891,  at  the 
age  of  sevent>--oue.  Unto  them  were  born  eight 
children,  five  of  whom  grew  to  mature  j-ears. 
William  W. ,  who  is  the  eldest,  married  Charlotte 
Waite,  and  is  living  in  Wheaton;  Leonard  E. 
is  the  next  younger;  Olive  M. ,  who  is  the  widow 
of  Hanson  Tiffany,  who  died  on  his  ranch  in 
Kan.sas,  is  now  living  in  Chicago;  Francis  L.  is  a 
clerk  in  the  mailing  department  of  the  Chicago 
po.stofhce;  and  Julia  A.  is  the  wife  of  Matthew 
Jack,  a  merchant  of  Chicago. 

Leonard  DeWolf  attended  the  public  schools  of 
the  Keystone  State  in  his  early  life,  and  also  was 
a  student  in  the  public  schools  of  Chicago,  and  in 
a  private  school  kept  by  ex-Sheriff  Mann.  He 
came  to  Wheaton  with  his  parents  on  his  four- 
teenth birthday,  and  attended  the  academical  de- 
partment of  Wheaton  College.  Subsequently,  he 
was  engaged  in  teaching,  being  employed  as 
teacher  in  the  High  School  of  Mt.  Carroll,  111., 
during  the  winter  of  1859-60.  It  was  his  in- 
tention to  enter  Yale  or  Har\-ard  College,  but 
when  the  war  broke  out  he  abandoned  his  cher- 
ished plan,  and  became  one  of  the  volunteers  of 
1861,  enlisting  in  McAllister's  Batten'  in  the 
three-months  ser\'ice.  Being  taken  sick  with 
malarial  fever,  he  was  sent  home,  and  after  his 
recovery  that  fall  he  re-engaged  in  teaching  in 
Carroll  County.  In  Augu.st,  1S62,  Mr.  DeWolf 
again  entered  the  service,  as  a  member  of  Com- 
pany F,  One  Hundred  and  Fifth  Illinois  Infontry. 
He  participated  in  the  attempt  to  surround  Mor- 


PORTRAIT  AND  nUK'.KArHICAI.    KI-CoRD. 


jjiin  III  Kiiiiiuk.> .  and  in  the  engagemciii  \\..- 
wouiulcd.  having  his  rijcht  leg  broken  by  a 
cluWjed  nuiskct.  He  was  ihen  taken  to  the  hos- 
pital and  discharged  on  acxrount  of  physical  dis- 
ability from  the  iiijnry  re»."eive<l  in  the  senice. 

Retuniing  home.  Mr.  Ik-Wolf  engaged  in  the 
study  of  law  with  Judge  Knowlton  Jameson  and 
his  father.  He  ha<l  to  supjxirt  himself  b\  doing 
clerical  work  during  this  time.  This,  together 
with  the  wound  reieived  in  the  army,  impaired 
his  health  so  that  he  was  oblige*!  to  .seek  outd<K»r 
employment.  He  therefore  engage<l  in  caqK-nter 
work  until  1S7S.  when  he  was  admitted  to  the 
Bar.  and  liegan  practice  in  Wheaton.  fonning  a 
partnership  with  E.  J.  Hill,  author  of  '■  Hills 
Digest. "  Subsetjuently.  he  formed  a  partnership 
with  W.  (i.  Smith,  and  in  1.S.S2  enteretl  the  finn 
of  DeWolf.  Miller  &  DeWolf.  of  Chicago,  prac- 
ticing in  that  city  until  1S89.  He  was  on  the 
■■  artesian-Well  murder  case,"  in  which  he  cleared 
the  defendant :  and  he  also  successfully  conducted 
the  case  for  the  plaiutiflf  in  "■  Zang  vs.  the  Illinois 
Central  Railroad  Company."  with  Chief  Justice 
Fuller  acting  for  the  defendants.  He  enjoyed  a 
very  gocxl  practice,  but  his  health  gave  way  again, 
and  he  was  obligetl  to  give  up  office  work.  For 
the  past  three  years  he  has  spent  the  winter  either 
in  I^juisiana  or  Florida. 

Mr.  DeWolf  was  married  in  1S6;.  to  Miss 
Wealthy  A.  Wait,  of  Wheaton,  a  native  of  Rut- 
land County,  Vt.  Their  union  has  been  bles.sed 
with  five  sons.  Oliver  C.  who  marrie*!  Hmma 
Murray,  and  was  con.structionist  for  the  Chicago 
&  Northwestern  Railroad  Company,  died  in  1.S91; 
Willis  R.  is  also  in  the  employ  of  the  railroad: 
Francis  L.  is  in  the  Freight  Auditor's  office  of 
the  Chicago  &  Northwestenj  Railroad:  Joseph 
V.  is  engaged  in  the  gr<icer>  business  in  Chi- 
cago, with  the  firm  of  Wait  &  Co. :  and  Hartley 
is  at  home. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  DeWolf  hold  meml)ership  with 
the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  and  Mr.  De- 
Wolf  belongs  to  E.  S.  Kelley  Pi.st  No.  51;,.  O. 
A.  R..  of  Wheaton;  and  als<j  to  the  I'nited  Broth- 
erhood of  Carpenters  an<l  Joiners  of  America. 
His  first  election  to  the  office  of  Justice  of  the 
Peace  occurred  in  1S66.  and  was  for  a  four-years 


u....  ;..  .  ,  .  ...  was  elected  .  ..  ;jctilion 
signed  by  sixty  citizens  of  Wheaton  and  vicinity, 
'and  ser\"ed  for  ei.;ht  years.  Followin.;  that  he 
engaged  as  finishing  carpenter  for  S.  D.  Weldcn. 
contractor  and  builder,  but  i;i  the  spring  of  1893, 
while  he  was  still  i:i  Florida,  he  was  again 
electe<l  Justice  of  the  Peacx-.  His  fretjuent  re- 
elections  l)esi)eak  his  j>opularity  and  the  confi- 
dence placed  in  hini.  while  his  long  omtinuetl 
.ser\ice  tells  of  faithful  jierfoimance  of  dut>  .  The 
trust  repose!  in  him  has  never  been  lietrayed,  and 
the  esteem  in  which  Mr.  DeWolf  is  held  is  justly 
merited. 


I'k^^l 


30HN  M.  ROHR  is  a  nieml>er  of  the  firm  of 
Springer  &  Rohr.  general  merchants  of  Tur- 
ner. These  gentlemen  are  well-known  busi- 
ness men  of  the  conununity.  and  are  doing  a  good 
business,  which  adds  not  only  to  their  own  pros- 
I)erity.  but  is  of  material  Inrnefit  to  the  town. 
They  carry  a  good  stock  and  have  a  first-class 
establishment,  which  receives  from  the  public  a 
liberal  patronage.  Mr.  Rohr,  who  is  a  native  of 
Baden,  Gennany.  was  Ixjni  May  2.  1848,  and 
is  a  son  of  John  M.  and  Mar>-  ( Zimpfer )  Rohr. 
also  natives  of  the  same  countn,-.  Their  chil- 
dren, three  sons  and  four  daughters,  were  as  Jol- 
lows:  Dora.  John  M..  Jacob,  Mary,  Sarah.  Char- 
lev,  and  a  daughter,  deceased.  The  father  was  a 
cooper  by  trade,  and  followed  that  business  in 
early  life,  but  afterward  became  a  gold-washer. 
He  crossed  the  broad  Atlantic  in  1882.  locating  in 
Plainfield,  111.  Subsequently  he  came  to  Turner, 
and  his  death  here  occurred  in  1892.  at  the  age  of 
seventy-seven  years.  His  wife  was  called  to  her 
final  rest  in  1879.  They  were  meml>ers  of  the 
Evangelical  Church.  The  jxitenial  grandfather. 
Jacob  Rohr.  die<l  in  C.ermany  at  the  age  of  ninety- 
one  years.  The  maternal  grandfather  was  a  Ger- 
man weaver,  and  also  reachetl  an  advanced  age. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch,   having  crossed  the 
Atlantic  to  America,  came  to  Turner  in  the  fall 
of  1 87 1,  and  worked  for  the  Northwestern   Rail 
road  Company  for  more  than  twenty -one  years. 


144 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


ten  years  of  which  time  he  was  on  the  road  as  an 
engineer.  He  was  a  young  man  of  twenty-three 
when  he  crossed  the  Atlantic,  and  hence  ahnost  his 
entire  business  career  has  been  connected  with  this 
comnuuiit}-.  While  in  his  native  land  he  served 
in  the  German  army,  and  was  in  the  Franco- 
Prussian  War  from  1870  until  1871.  In  1869, 
he  was  made  a  Corporal,  and  served  as  such  until 
the  close  of  his  term. 

On  the  ist  of  November,  1874,  was  celebrated 
the  marriage  of  Mr.  Rohr  and  Miss  Christina 
Stauffer,  daughter  of  Jacob  and  Christina  vStauf- 
fer.  Four  children  have  been  born  unto  them, 
three  sons  and  a  daughter;  Frederick,  Caroline, 
Wilhelm  and  Charles.  The  parents  are  both 
members  of  the  Evangelical  Church. 

Mr.  Rohr  is  a  member  of  the  Brotherhood  of 
Locomotive  Engineers,  and  also  of  the  Indepen- 
dent Order  of  Odd  Fellows.  In  his  political  be- 
lief, he  is  a  Republican,  having  supported  that 
party  since  becoming  an  American  citizen.  Fre- 
quently he  has  been  called  upon  to  fill  positions 
of  public  trust,  having  served  for  three  terms  on 
the  Village  Board  and  two  terms  on  the  Board  of 
Education.  He  possesses  good  business  and  ex- 
ecutive ability,  and  during  his  residence  in  this 
countn-  has  prospered,  becoming  one  of  the  well- 
to-do  citizens  of  Turner,  where  in  addition  to  his 
store  he  owns  his  home  and  other  property. 


]^H^1=- 


r~RANK  WHITTON,  who  is  proprietor  of  a 
r^  meat-market  in  Turner,  is  a  worthy  repre- 
I  *  sentative  of  the  English  community  which 
helps  to  make  up  the  enterprising  little  town. 
He  was  born  in  Devonshire,  England,  January 
30,  1839,  and  is  a  son  of  Henry  T.  and  Nancy 
(Glanville)  Whitton,  whose  family  numbered  four 
sons  and  two  daughters,  all  yet  living,  namely: 
John,  Edward  W.,  Frank,  Mary  Ann,  Emma  and 
Henr>-.  The  father  was  a  sturdy  farmer,  and 
died  in  England  in  1876.  His  wife,  who  was  a 
member  of  the  Episcopal  Church,  passed  away 
about  1850.  The  paternal  grandfather  was  a 
Captain  Tn  the  regular  army,  and  lived  to  an   ad- 


vanced age.  The  maternal  grandfather,  John 
Glanville,  followed  farming  in  England,  where  he 
died  at  about  the  age  of  sixty-five. 

Frank  Whitton  whose  name  heads  this  record 
spent  his  boyhood  days  midst  play  and  work  on 
his  father's  farm,  and  through  the  winter  season 
attended  the  common  schools,  where  he  acquired 
a  good  English  education.  His  summer  months 
were  devoted  to  the  labors  of  the  field.  In  1858, 
at  the  age  of  nineteen  years,  he  bade  adieu  to 
home  and  friends,  and  left  his  native  land  for 
America.  He  had  no  capital  save  a  young  man's 
bright  hope  of  the  future  and  a  determination  to 
win  success. 

Mr.  Whitton  located  in  Winfield  Township, 
DuPage  County,  where  he  has  since  made  his 
home,  with  the  exception  of  two  years  spent  in 
Batavia.  For  the  first  two  years  after  his  arrival, 
he  worked  by  the  month  as  a  farm  hand,  and 
then  rented  land  until  he  could  acquire  enough 
capital  to  purchase.  In  1864,  as  before  stated,  he 
went  to  Batavia,  where  he  spent  two  years.  On 
the  expiration  of  that  period,  he  came  to  Turner, 
and  opened  a  meat-market,  which  he  has  since 
conducted  with  good  success,  enjoying  a  fair  trade, 
which  has  constantly  increased  from  the  begin- 
ning, and  which  now  yields  a  good  income. 

On  the  23d  of  February,  1864,  Mr.  Whitton 
was  united  in  marriage  with  Mi.ss  Mary  Ellen 
Lindley,  daughter  of  James  and  Eleanor  f  Court) 
Lindley,  who  were  both  born  in  Sheffield,  Eng- 
land, as  was  also  Mrs.  Whitton.  They  ha\e  had 
born  to  them  a  family  -of  four  children,  three  sons 
and  a  daughter:  Frank  H.,  Fred  L-,  Eleanor 
May,  all  now  living,  and  one  who  died  in  infancy. 
Mrs.  Whitton  is  a  member  of  the  Congregational 
Church.  They  have  a  pleasant  home  in  Turner, 
which  is  the  property  of  Mr.  Whitton,  who  also 
owns  other  residences  here.  In  politics,  our  sub- 
ject is  a  supporter  of  Democratic  principles.  He 
has  served  as  Township  Collector  one  term,  was 
a  member  of  the  Village  Board  of  Trustees  for 
about  twelve  terms,  and  acted  as  its  President  for 
one  term.  In  the  various  public  offices  he  has 
been  called  upon  to  fill,  he  has  di.scharged  his 
duties  in  a  manner  that  has  won  for  him  the  com- 
mendation of  all  concerned,    and  led  to  his  fre- 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


"45 


quent  re-elections.  Such  is  the  life  record  of  a 
self-made  man.  whose  indefatigable  lalx)rs  have 
won  for  him  success  in  life  and  gaineil  for  him  a 

ii>infiirt.il)U-  hi>im:. 


i-H^ 


f=> 


NdN  l.rTHKK  1..  HIAIT  is  cnnajjetl  in 
the  drug  bu.siuess  in  Wheaton  and  is  one  of 
the  most  prominent  and  enterprising  busi- 
ness men  of  the  place.  He  has  carried  on  opera- 
lions  along  this  line  since  May,  1.S59.  and  deals 
extensively  in  drugs,  toilet  articles,  medicines, 
paints,  oils  and  everxthing  found  in  a  first-class 
establishment  of  the  kind.  Wheaton  could  ill  af- 
ford to  lose  so  valuable  a  citizen,  for  the  best  in- 
terests of  the  place  have  ever  found  in  him  a 
friend. 

Mr.  Hiatt  was  tioni  in  Heiiry  County.  lud., 
August  2,  1S44,  and  at  the  age  of  fourteen  came 
to  IhiPage  County  with  his  parents.  Dr.  A.  H. 
and  Man- Ann  (Bowman)  Hiatt.  The  father  is 
now  seventy  years  of  age  and  is  practicing  his 
chosen  profession  in  Chicago.  For  a  long  time 
he  was  one  of  the  leading  physicians  of  Wheaton, 
and  perhaps  no  man  was  better  or  more  favorably 
known  in  DuPage  County  than  he.  His  wife  is 
still  living  at  the  age  of  sixty-four.  They  were  the 
parents  of  eleven  children,  seven  of  whom  are  yet 
living:  Luther  L.;  Martha  A.,  wife  of  George  F. 
Cram,  of  Chicago:  Felicia  H..  wife  of  E.  H.  Scott, 
of  Chicago:  CasjK-r  W..  pastor  of  the  First  Con- 
gregational Church  of  Peoria.  111.:  "Jes.sie  F.. 
widow  of  Dr.  Milton  F.  Coe.  who  died  in  Chicago; 
Lucius  M..  a  musician  and  music-dealer  of  Whea- 
ton; and  Alfred  H..  who  is  Principal  of  scho<jls  at 
Dallas  City.  111.  The  four  now  decea.sed  were: 
I<evi  Chalmers,  who  died  at  the  age  of  six  years: 
Ach.sa.  who  died  in  infancy;  Charles  \'on  Linne- 
aus.  who  diet!  in  1863.  at  the  age  of  twelve;  and 
Evangelitic.  who  Ixrcame  the  wife  of  E.  A.  Berge. 
of  Toulon.  111.,  and  died,  leaving  a  son  Edward, 
agetl  twelve  years. 

In  his  youth  Dr.  Hiatt  wxs  a  "Hoosier  Sch<»ol- 
Ijoy."  He  also  attended  the  Quaker  SchfKil  in 
Westfield.    Hamilton  County.    Ind.      His  father 


was  a  scholarly  man.  and  was  identified  with  the 
Methodist  Episoipal  Church.  l)eing  well  known 
as  a  MetluKlist  preaclr.r.  a  scivntist  ancl  ])r.-irtic- 
ing  j)liysician.  In  May.  1S59.  on  aixtiunl  of  the 
eilucational  advantages  afforde<l  in  Wheaton.  he 
removetl  his  family  to  this  place  and  entered  ujxin 
the  practice  of  his  profession.  At  the  same  lime 
he  lK)Ught  out  the  drug  stt>re  owneil  by  Dr. 
l^iwry.  then  the  prindpal  i)racticing  physician  of 
the  place. 

Luther  L.  Hiatt  entered  Wheaton  College, 
where  he  continued  his  studies  until  iSf^i.  when. 
like  many  another  y<mng  man,  he  lefljhe  schcwl- 
room  for  the  battlefield.  Enlisting  as  a  mendjer 
of  Coinpanv  F,  One  Hundred  and  Fifth  Illinois 
Infantry,  he  was  nuislered  into  service  at  Chicago 
and  ser\'ed  mostly  in  the  Army  of  the  West,  un- 
der Gens.  Thomas  and  Sherninn.  He  was  de- 
tailed as  prescription  clerk  in  the  inetiical  depart- 
ment of  the  regiment,  and  for  some  time  occtipied 
the  same  position  with  the  brigade.  After  the 
battle  of  Resaca,  which  was  his  first  engagement, 
he  was  left  in  charge  of  eleven  hundred  woundwl 
soldiers.  He  participated  in  the  niemoral)le 
march  with  Sherman  to  the  .sea.  tcwk  part  in  the 
siege  of  Richmond,  and  was  in  the  Grand  Review 
in  Washington  at  the  close  t)f  the  war.  He  was 
mustered  out  in  the  Capitol  City.  June  7.  1S65. 
and  received  his  discharge  in  Chicago  when  not 
quite  twenty-one  years  of  age. 

At  the  close  of  the  war  Mr.  Hiatt  returned  to 
the  drug  business,  which  he  had  learned  in  his 
fathers  .store.  He  was  niarrie<l  Octolxrr  4,  1S65, 
to  Miss  Statira  F^  Jewett,  of  Saratoga.  N.  Y.. 
and  unto  them  have  been  bom  four  children. 
Truman  L..  the  eldest,  died  in  infancy.  Linneaus 
L.  is  in  the  freight  oflice  of  the  Chicago  iS:  Xorth- 
westeni  Railroad  Company  at  Chicago.  Charles 
M.  is  assistant  pharmacist  in  his  father's  store; 
and  Luther  J.  is  still  attending  school. 

Mr.  Hiatt  is  a  wide-awake  and  energetic  bu.si- 
ness  man,  and  is  most  highly  esteemed  where  he 
is  best  known.  He  is  now  doing  a  good  business, 
and  his  success  is  due  to  his  integrity,  fair  deal- 
ing and  close  attention  to  details.  Mr.  Hiatt  is 
quite  prominent  in  ixjlitical  and  Grand  Anny  cir- 
cles.   He  is  a  stalwart  Republican,  and  is  a  char- 


146 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


ter  member  of  E.  S.  Kelley  Post  No.  513,  G.  A.  R., 
of  Wheatoii.  of  which  he  is  uow  Commander. 
His  wife  is  a  member  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church.  He  has  been  elected  to  a  number  of  of- 
fical  positions,  and  sen-ed  as  Justice  of  the  Peace 
and  Police  Magistrate  for  eighteen  years.  He 
was  also  appointed  b3-  President  Hayes  as  Post- 
master, and  filled  that  position  for  one  term.  Mr. 
Hiatt  was  elected  to  the  Thirty-third  and  Thirty- 
fourth  Assemblies,  and  was  one  of  the  invincible 
one  hundred  and  three  who  \oted  for  Logan.  From 
1890  until  1S92  inclusive  he  was  Trustee  of  the 
Elgfin  Insane  Hospital,  but  was  removed  by  Gov. 
Altgeld,  who  requested  him  to  resign.  Mr.  Hiatt 
did  not  accede  to  this  request,  because  he  believed 
that  the  hospital  .should  ha\-e  no  connection  with 
political  aflFairs  or  partisan  measures,  but  the 
Governor  made  it  a  question  of  politics,  and  in 
consequence  removed  Mr.  Hiatt  from  that  posi- 
tion. In  all  of  his  public  and  official  duties,  our 
subject  has  been  prompt  and  faithful  and  has  won 
the  high  commendation  and  regard  of  all  parties. 
He  is  well  known  throughout  the  State,  and  a  life 
of  uprightness  has  won  him  unbounded  confi- 
dence. 


_^] 


"^ 


^+^ 


[^~ 


r~  E.  MATHER,  one  of  the  prominent  and 
1^  highly  respected  citizens  of  Wheaton,  occu- 
I  pies  a  position  as  foreman  with  the  David 
Bradley  Manufacturing  Company,  of  Chicago. 
He  is  a  thorough-going  business  man,  and  his 
connection  with  the  above  company  has  continued 
for  nian\-  years.  Located  within  forty-five  min- 
utes' ride  of  the  great  metropolis.  Wheaton  has 
many  men  who  go  down  to  the  cit\"  even-  day  in 
the  pursuance  of  their  business. 

Mr.  Mather  was  bom  in  Washington  Count}-, 
N.  Y.,  March  iS,  1842.  His  father,  George  W. 
Mather,  was  bom  on  the  27th  of  August,  1805, 
in  Ben-son,  Rutland  County,  Vt.  The  grand- 
father, Dennis  Mather,  was  a  native  of  Sharon, 
Conn.  He  followed  farming  through  much  of 
his  life,  and  also  carried  on  a  blacksmith-shop. 
After  attaining  to  mature  years,  George  W. 
Mather  was  united  in  marriage  with  Elvira  War- 


ren, who  belonged  to  the  same  familj-  as  Gen. 
Warren,  who  fell  at  the  battle  of  Bunker  Hill. 
Her  grandfather.  Col.  Gideon  Warren,  was  a 
brother  of  the  General,  and  was  at  the  battle  of 
Ticonderoga  with  Ethan  Allen.  The  family 
therefore  was  well  represented  in  the  struggle  for 
independence.  The  marriage  of  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Mather  was  celebrated  in  Washington  County, 
N.  v..  and  they  became  the  parents  of  seven  chil- 
dren. Ehira  is  the  wife  of  George  Porter,  of 
Providence,  R.  I. :  Louisa  became  the  wife  of 
Hoyt  Beeman,  of  Chicago,  and  died,  leaving 
four  children:  Clarinda  died  at  the  age  of  five 
years:  Warren,  who  enlisted  in  the  Sixth  Ver- 
mont Infantry,  was  wounded  while  in  the  service, 
and  died  in  the  hospital  at  Baltimore;  Asa,  who 
entered  the  sen-ice  as  a  private  of  the  Sixth  Yer- 
mont  Infantry-,  and  \\as  mustered  out  as  First 
Lieutenant,  married  Miss  Elmira  Wilson,  and  is 
now  a  farmer  of  Perr\-  County.  Pa.:  and  Emmett, 
who  serA'ed  in  the  First  A'ermont  Cavalry,  wedded 
Caroline  Naramore,  of  the  Green  Mountain  State, 
and  is  now  engaged  in  mining  in  Norris,  Mont. 
Fred  Mather,  who  completes  the  family,  spent 
the  first  five  years  of  his  life  in  the  county  of  his 
nati\-ity,  and  then  accompanied  his  parents  on 
their  return  to  Rutland  Counts\  Vt.  At  the  age 
of  twelve  he  came  to  Wheaton  to  live  with  his 
uncle,  F.  H.  Mather,  whose  .sketch  appears  else- 
where in  this  work.  He  attended  the  \\^heaton 
public  schools,  also  the  Wheaton  College,  at  that 
time  called  the  Illinois  Institute.  When  his  edu- 
cation was  completed,  and  he  had  arrived  at  man's 
estate,  he  was  married,  on  the  25th  of  March, 
1863,  to  Miss  Marj-  Jane  Hadley.  During  the 
six  succeeding  },ears,  he  operated  the  farm  of  his 
uncle,  after  which  he  engaged  with  Frank  Stur- 
gis  &  Co.,  now  the  Chicago  Stamping  Company, 
as  foreman,  sening  in  that  capacity  for  seven 
years.  He  was  next  employed  with  the  Wilson 
Packing  Company-,  of  Chicago,  for  two  years, 
and  then  formed  a  business  connection  with  the 
Chicago  Meat  Presening  Company,  which  con- 
tinued one  year.  On  the  expiration  of  that 
period  he  engaged  with  the  Furst  &  Bradley 
Manufacturing  Companj-,  and  is  now  assistant 
superintendent   of  the  plow   factor^-,  with  three 


George  \\'.  Browx. 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RliCORI). 


149 


departments  under  his  supenision.  For  the  pa>i 
fifleen  years  he  has  been  tx)nne«.-teil  with  tliis 
fimi.  proving  an  efficient  and  inisicl  tinploye. 

In  1873.  Mr.  Mather  was  calUul  ujMin  to  nionni 
the  loss  of  his  wife,  who  died  on  the  19th  of 
March.  leaving  a  son,  Hiram  I„..  who  is  now 
twt-nty  year^  of  age.  On  the  22d  of  Januan,-, 
1876,  Mr.  Mather  married  Mrs.  KlizaJieth  Hrook- 
ins,  widow  of  William  A.  Hrookins.  of  Ccntralia, 
111.  ]iy  her  first  marriage  she  luul  four  children, 
two  yet  living  :  Charles  W.,  who  is  engaged  in 
business  in  Kvanston:  and  Alice,  wife  of  A.sa 
Wakely,  of  Whealoii.  Into  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Mather  was  l>oni  a  son.  Harry  \V..  who  died  Feb- 
niar>-  22,  1893. 

Mr.  Mather  is  a  memljer  of  the  IndejxMident 
Order  of  Foresters,  of  Chicago,  and  Chosen 
Friends,  in  the  same  city.  His  wife  is  a  memljcr 
of  the  Methcxli.st  Kpiscopal  Church  of  Wlieaton. 
He  exercises  his  right  of  franchise  in  support  of 
the  Rejujblican  party.  Our  subject  has  a  good 
home  and  many  friends  in  Wheaton,  and  through- 
out the  community  is  held  in  warm  regard. 


=e-^>-^P= 


3rDGE  GEORGF  W.  BROWN.  Among  its 
rising  young  men,  of  whom  it  has  many, 
DuPage  County  can  l>oast  of  no  one  more 
pnjmising  than  the  subject  of  this  sketch.  He 
has  made  his  mark  as  a  shining  light  in  the  legal 
profession,  and  is  regardetl  as  an  able  Judge,  both 
in  DuPage  and  Cook  Counties.  As  one  of  the 
sons  of  a  pioneer  family  of  this  county,  he  has 
always  been  ver>-  much  interested  in  everything 
tending  to  advance  its  interests,  and  is  naturally 
particularly  partial  to  Wheaton,  where  he  makes 
his  home.  Ha\ing  l)eeii  elected  to  the  Judge- 
ship of  Du  Page  County,  he  has  lieen  called  to 
Chicago  to  as.sist  Judge  Scales,  and  has  now  for  a 
period  of  two  years  filled  the  arduous  jxisition  of 
A.ssistant  County  Judge  of  C<x»k  County,  as  well 
as  perfonning  those  duties  devolving  upon  him  in 
his  position  in  this  cfuuity.  The  able  maimer 
with  which  he  has  acquitte<l  himself  is  to  the 
credit  of  himself  and  constituents. 


The  birth  of  our  subject  ixxrurretl  in  W'infield 
Township.  Du  Page  County.  He  is  a  son  of 
James  and  Rosanna  ( .Schofield  1  Brown,  iHirn  to 
them  May  17,  is^y.  The  father  came  from  New 
York  State,  locating  in  what  is  now  DuPage 
County.  111.,  in  1S33.  He  was  an  c.\len^i\e 
fanner  and  a  veterinan,-  surgeon  of  UkmI  reputa- 
tion. His  death  cKxnimd  when  in  his  seventieth 
year,  in  April,  1879.  He  had  l)een  previously 
married,  and  by  his  first  wife  had  se\eral  chil- 
dren. The  mother  of  our  subject  was  also  mar- 
rie<l  l)efore.    and   had  children  b\-  her  first  unimi. 

The  lioyluKKl  of  Judge  Brown  was  i)asse<l  in  Du- 
Page County,  where  he  received  good  school  ad- 
vantages and  atteiuleil  the  excellent  schools  of 
Wheaton,  to  which  place  his  parents  had  removed 
in  order  to  give  him  good  advantages.  He  gra<l- 
uated  from  the  High  Sch<H)l  with  honor,  and  af- 
terward entered  the  Northwesteni  College,  of  Na- 
penille,  where  he  remained  a  student  for  two  or 
three  years.  On  l>eginning  the  active  duties  of 
life,  he  engaged  in  teaching  in  this  county  for  a 
year.  He  had  long  determined  to  adopt  a  pro- 
fession, and  having  a  particular  inclination  to- 
ward the  study  of  law,  entered  the  office  of  Hoy  ne, 
Horton  &  Hoyne,  of  Chicago.  He  became  a 
student  in  the  I'nion  College  of  Law  in  that  city, 
where,  after  a  tlu)rough  course  of  stncK  lie  was 
graduated  in  the  Class  of  '83, 

Inunediately  ujion  leaving  college.  Judge  Br>)wn 
opened  an  office  in  Wheaton,  being  admitted  to 
practice  before  the  DuPage  County  courts.  His 
ability  and  genius,  his  fine  legal  attainments  and 
oratorical  iX)wers  iK-ing  recognized,  it  was  no  sur- 
prise to  his  friends,  when,  in  1890,  he  receivetl  the 
nomination  for  Judge  on  the  Republican  ticket, 
anil  was  elected  by  agixxl  majority.  Still  greater 
honors  were  in  store  for  him,  for  in  1891  he  was 
called  by  Judge  Scales  to  the  jxisition  of  A.s.sociate 
Judge  of  Cook  County.  He  is  without  question 
a  man  of  superior  attainments,  and  as  a  presid- 
ing Judge  he  maintains  the  scales  of  equity  with 
unbia.se<l  ImiKir  .md  tainu-ss  to  riili  .mil  jxKir 
alike. 

Fraternall>  ,  the  Judge  i.s  a  Ma.son.  lj«.'U>nging 
to  Wheaton  L<xlge  No.  209;  Doric  Chapter  No. 
166,  of  Turner;  at»d  Bethel  Commander}-  No.  36, 


I50 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


K.  T.,  of  Elgin.  He  is  also  a  member  of  the 
Knights  of  Pythias  order,  of  Wheaton,  the  Na- 
tional Union,  and  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  Amer- 
ica. As  to  politics,  he  is  well  known  as  a  Re- 
publican protective-tariff  man,  and  his  voice  has 
been  heard  in  many  a  campaign  in  behalf  of  the 
party  whose  aim  it  is  to  protect  American  indus- 
try and  preser\'e  America  for  her  sons. 


=] 


^-^ 


[^~ 


I  EVINUS  L.  STARK,  of  Wheaton,  the  effi- 
I  C  cient  and  popular  Sheriff  of  DuPage  County, 
V^J  was  elected  to  his  present  position  in  the 
fall  oi  1890,  and  has  .since  acceptably  and  credit- 
ably discharged  the  duties  of  the  office.  This  i.s^ 
the  county  of  his  nativity,  his  birth  having  oc- 
curred in  Bloomingdale  Township,  December  30, 
1863.  He  is  a  son  of  Martin  and  Margaret 
(Voll)  Stark,  both  of  whom  were  natives  of  Ger- 
many, having  been  born  near  Mertzburg,  Ba- 
varia. Having  emigrated  to  America,  the  father 
settled  in  Bloomingdale  Township,  DuPage 
County,  in  1848.  He  has  been  a  prosperous  farm- 
er and  is  now  living  a  retired  life  in  Wheaton. 
The  family  numbered  thirteen  children  but  only 
four  are  now  living:  Levinus  L.,  John  S.,  Blat- 
zer  and  Katie  E. 

In  taking  up  the  hi.story  of  our  subject,  we  pre- 
sent to  our  readers  the  life  record  of  one  of  the 
wide-awake  and  enterprising  citizens  of  Wheaton. 
His  education  was  acquired  in  the  common  schools 
and  on  its  completion  he  began  earning  his  own 
livelihood  by  working  at  the  tinner's  trade,  which 
he  followed  until  nineteen  years  of  age.  He  then 
embarked  in  the  hotel  business  and  became  the 
landlord  of  the  Union  Hotel,  which  he  carried  on 
until  entering  upon  official  life. 

On  May  23,  1889,  Mr.  Stark  was  united  in  mar- 
riage with  Miss  Anna  M.  Kampp,  of  Wheaton, 
a  daughter  of  Conrad  and  Lugartus  (Loos) 
Kampp.  Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Stark  has  been  born 
a  daughter,  Mabel  Marguerite.  The  parents  are 
both  members  of  the  Catholic  Church,  and  are  both 
widely  and  favorably  known,  having  many  warm 
friends  throughout  the  community. 


In  his  political  affiliations,  Mr.  Stark  is  a  Dem- 
ocrat, having  supported  the  Democracj'  since  at- 
taining his  majority.  Under  President  Cleve- 
land's second  administration  he  was  appointed 
Postma.ster  of  Wheaton,  but  resigned  his  position 
upon  receiving  the  nomination  for  the  office  of 
County  Sheriff  in  1890.  The  election  returns 
show  that  he  was  elected  by  a  flattering  majority, 
and  soon  afterwards  he  entered  upon  the  duties  of 
the  position,  which  he  has  .since  discharged  with 
promptness  and  fidelity.  His  management  of  af- 
fairs has  certainly  proved  creditable  to  himself 
and  satisfactory  to  his  constituents.  He  gives  his 
entire  time  to  his  official  labors  and  is  constantly 
growing  in  popularity.  Perhaps  no  officer  in  the 
county  is  more  highly  or  generally  esteemed.  He 
has  made  warm  friends  among  all  classes,  and  the 
confidence  and  regard  of  the  entire  community  are 
his.  Sociallv,  he  is  a  member  of  the  Knights  of 
Pvthias  fraternity  and  of  the  National  Union. 


!<"  T">ci 


-S3 


n  H.  KAMPP,  who  is  extensively  engaged  in 
I  the  furniture  business  in  Wheaton,  and  is  a 
Qj  member  of  the  Board  of  Education,  ranks 
among  those  most  prominent  in  the  upbuilding  of 
the  best  interests  of  the  city.  His  close  attention 
to  his  business,  his  pleasant  and  genial  manner, 
and  his  fair  dealing,  have  not  only  gained  for  him  a 
liberal  patronage,  but  have  secured  him  the  confi- 
dence and  respect  of  all  with  whom  he  is  brought 
in  contact. 

The  record  of  Mr.  Kampp's  life  is  as  follows: 
He  was  born  in  Chicago,  and  is  the  son  of  Con- 
rad and  Lugartus  ( Loos )  Kampp,  the  former  a  na- 
tive of  Germany,  and  the  latter  of  France.  They 
came  to  Wheaton  in  1865,  and  the  father  estab- 
lished himself  in  the  furniture  business  in  this 
place.  The  Kampp  Furniture  House  is  one  of  the 
oldest  business  hou.ses  in  Wheaton,  and  the  oldest 
furniture  establishment  in  the  count}-.  Our  subject 
was  reared  in  this  place  and  acquired  his  educa- 
tion in  the  public  schools  and  High  School.  His 
father  began  operations  here  with  a  capital  of  only 
$2,500,    but   is  now  a  well-to-do   undertaker   of 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL    RIXORD. 


"51 


Chicago.  ha\'inR  branch  establishments  at  More- 
land  and  Anstiii.  He  is  now  fifty  nine  years  of 
age.  and  his  wife  has  reachetl  the  age  of  fifty- 
seveti. 

Owing  to  an  accident  to  the  father,  costing  him 
the  loss  of  an  ann.  our  subject  was  at  the  age  of 
ten  years  calle<l  ui»on  to  take  a  hand  in  his  father's 
business.  He  therefore  had  to  leave  school,  but 
became  thoroughly  conversant  with  all  the  details 
of  busine^  and  gainetl  useful  knowledge  through 
contact  with  the  world  in  a  business  way.  He 
cuntinueil  to  assist  his  father  until  he  bought  out 
the  establishment,  some  three  years  ago. 

In  Febnian, .  1S90,  Mr.  Kampp  was  joined  in 
wedlock  with  Miss  Katie  Wolf  of  Klnihurst.  and 
unto  them  have  been  boni  two  children:  Florence, 
who  is  now  two  years  old.  and  Harry,  aged  four- 
teen months.  The  parents  are  both  members  ot 
the  Catholic  Church,  and  Mr.  Kampp  is  a  Demo- 
crat in  politics.  His  business  is  constantly  in- 
crea^ang  and  nets  him  satisfactor>  results.  Within 
the  past  few  months  he  has  supplied  with  funiiture 
the  Waldonif  Hotel,  of  Chicago,  and  the  Glen 
Ellyn  Hotel,  of  Glen  Ellyn.  He  has  also  furnished 
the  Columbia,  on  Madison  and  Peoria  Streets, 
Chicago,  and  the  Albany  Hotel,  on  Clark  and 
Adams  Streets.  Mr.  Kampp  is  a  self-made  man. 
and  commands  the  respect  of  all  who  know  him. 
He  had  to  enter  upon  life's  duties  when  quite 
young,  having  since  his  eleventh  >  ear  earned  his 
own  livelihood.  Step  by  step,  however,  he  has 
worked  his  way  upward  to  a  position  of  affluence, 
and  his  enteri)rise  and  diligence  have  gained  him 
a  high  degree  of  prosperity. 


\-^^^\ 


Q  I:NJAMIN  HOWARTH.  the  enten)rising 
r?\  !•  very  man  of  Turner,  has  been  located  in 
L^  ;his  place  since  1878.  He  is  a  native  of  the 
Hinpire  State,  his  birth  having  occurred  in  Au- 
Inim  on  the  2d  of  Augu.st,  1842.  His  parents. 
Saunders  and  Mary  ( Peacock  1  Howarth,  were 
both  natives  of  England.  The  father  crossed  the 
Atlantic  to  America  some  time  in  the  '20s.  He 
came  to  Illinois  in   1843  and  first  made  a  settle- 


ment at  St.  Charles,  where  he  residetl  for  two 
years.  He  tluMi  reniovctl  to  DuPage  County. 
settling  ujH)n  a  farm  some  two  and  .1  half  miles 
north  of  Whealon,  which  he  Cf)nlinue<l  to  operate 
until  shortly  before  his  death,  which  occurred  in 
June.  1 88 1,  at  the  age  of  seventy  six  years  He 
was  a  good  citizen,  and  wxs  held  in  the  highest  re- 
spect by  his  friends  and  neighbors.  As  a  public- 
sj>irite<l  man.  he  was  interested  in  all  township 
improvements,  and  had  fillet!  theixisilionsof  Road 
Commissioner  and  Township  Super\-isor.  His 
wife  sur\ivetl  him  only  two  years,  and  was  a  lit- 
tle over  seventy -five  years  of  age.  B<nh  parents 
were  members  of  the  Church  of  England.  Our 
subject's  paternal  grandfather.  Owen  Howarth, 
was  a  saddler  and  haniess-maker  by  ottrupation. 
His  death  occurre<l  where  his  life  had  been  passed, 
in  England.  William  Peacock,  the  matenial 
grandfather,  who  was  also  an  Englishman,  fol- 
lowed agricultural  pursuits.  At  the  age  of  eighty 
years  he  was  still  hale  and  hearty,  and  met  his 
death  by  accident,  Ix-ing  thrnwii  from  a  horse 
while  on  a  fox  hunt. 

Our  subject  is  one  of  eight  children,  four  sons 
and  four  daughters:  Eli/a.  wife  of  Guy  Levens: 
Cordelia,  now  Mrs.  G.  Higgins;  William:  Benja- 
min: Jane,  wife  of  D.  Rhinehart:  Lyman:  and 
two  deceased.  Benjamin  was  only  a  >ear  old 
when  his  parents  brought  him  to  Illinois,  and  his 
boyhood  days  were  pa.s.sed  on  his  father's  farm, 
his  time  being  divided  Inrtween  a.ssisting  in  agri- 
cultural lalx>rs  and  in  obtaining  his  education  in 
the  district  scIkmjIs.  His  life  passed  une\ent- 
fully  on  the  old  homestead  utitit  h.-  :irri\iil  at 
man's  estate. 

In  starting  out  to  fight  life's  UiUlc.-.  Ii>r  lum- 
.self.  Mr.  Howarth  chose  as  his  life's  companion 
Miss  Enmia  \'ander\-olgian.  their  union  being 
celebrated  in  1S76.  She  is  a  daughter  of  Cor- 
nelius and  Lizzie  i  Fitch  )  ^'ander^•olgian.  and  by 
her  marriage  has  l>ecome  the  mother  of  one  daugh- 
ter. Hattie  Malxrl. 

In  his  political  affiliations,  .Mr.  Howarth  es- 
pou.ses  the  cause  of  the  Republican  party,  and  is 
an  active  worker  in  the  ranks.  Socially,  he  is  a 
member  of  the  Odd  Fellows'  frateniily.  It  was 
on  the  12th  of  March,  1878,  that  our  subject  came 


152 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


to  Turner,  and  two  years  later  he  erected  a  large 

liverj'  stable,  and  has  since  been  successfully  en- 
gaged in  business.  He  is  a  man  of  good  execu- 
tive ability,  and  has  made  wise  investments  of 
his  income.  He  owns  a  good  property  of  one 
hundred  and  .sixty  acres  of  improved  farming  land 
in  Nebra.ska. 


i^HJH^ 


(S_ 


EASPAR  VOLL,  who  is  engaged  in  general 
merchandising  in  Turner,  is  a  native  of  Ger- 
many. He  was  born  in  Poppenhausen,  Ba- 
varia, on  the  7th  of  May,  1835,  and  is  one  of 
seven  children,  whose  parents,  Casper  J.  and 
Barbara  (Kirchner)  \'oll,  were  also  natives  of 
the  Fatherland.  Of  the  four  sons  and  three 
daughters,  only  two  are  now  living,  our  subject 
and  Margaret,  wife  of  Martin  Stark,  of  Wheaton. 
The  father  of  this  family  was  a  hotel-keeper  and 
farmer  in  German}-.  In  1847  ^e  determined  to 
seek  a  home  in  the  New  World,  and  crossing  the 
broad  Atlantic  to  America,  took  up  his  residence 
in  DuPage  County,  just  north  of  Wheaton, 
where  he  died  about  a  year  later,  at  the  age  of 
sixt}-.  His  wife  survived  him  about  fifteen  years. 
They  were  both  members  of  the  Catholic  Church. 
In  taking  up  the  personal  hi.story  of  our  .sub- 
ject, we  present  to  our  readers  the  life  record  of 
one  of  the  entei-prising  and  progressive  citizens 
of  this  community.  He  was  a  lad  of  twelve  years 
when  he  accompanied  his  parents  on  their  emi- 
gration to  America.  The  greater  part  of  his  edu- 
cation was  acquired  previous  to  leaving  his  na- 
tive land.  His  father  had  three  hundred  acres  a 
mile  and  a-half  north  of  Wheaton,  and  after  his 
death  our  subject  managed  and  controlled  the 
farm  for  his  mother  until  she  was  again  married. 
About  1857  he  began  merchandising  at  Winfield 
Station,  where  he  remained  until  1S66,  when  he 
came  to  Turner  and  opened  a  .store  at  this  place. 
During  the  long  years  of  his  business  connection 
with  Turner  he  has  always  been  known  as  a  man 
of  upright  principle  and  integrity  of  character, 
who  has  the  confidence  and  high  regard  of  all. 
In   December,    1859,   was  celebrated   the  mar- 


riage of  Mr.  Voll  and  Miss  Elizabeth  M.,  daugh- 
ter of  John  and  Mary  (Brennan)  Murra}-.  She 
died  August  7,  1870,  in  the  faith  of  the  Catholic 
Church,  of  which  Mr.  Voll  is  also  a  member.  He 
was  again  married,  October  28,  187 1,  his  second 
union  being  with  Mi.ss  Jennie  Crombie  Beard, 
daughter  of  Asa  M.  and  L,ucy  Jane  (Trull)  Beard. 
Two  children  ha\-e  been  born  unto  them,  John  A. 
and  Charles  W. 

In  his  social  relations  our  subject  is  connected 
with  Amity  Lodge  No.  472,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.; 
Doric  Chapter  No.  166,  R.  A.  M.;  and  the  order 
of  the  Eastern  Star,  to  which  his  wife  also  be- 
longs. In  politics,  he  votes  with  the  Democratic 
party.  He  was  the  prime  mover  in  the  organiza- 
tion of  the  village,  and  has  .served  as  Trustee  of 
Turner  for  three  years.  He  is  now  sen-ing  as 
Deputy  vSheriff,  and  for  many  years  he  was  School 
Director  and  School  Trustee.  While  at  Winfield 
he  served  as  Postmaster  for  four  Ncars  and  was 
also  Station  Agent.  Mr.  Voll  has  a  well-kept 
and  well-stocked  .store  and  is  doing  a  very  good 
business,  which  is  constantly  increasing.  He  is 
One  of  the  popular  merchants  of  the  place,  being 
pleasant  and  genial  in  manner  and  ever  ready  to 
supply  the  wants  of  his  customers,  if  it  lies  within 
his  power  to  do  so. 

^  g,  '=g-^-ji^^E-.o^ — ■ g 

EEORGE  WASHINGTON  CROMER,  who 
is  engaged  in  the  coal  and  lumber  business 
at  Turner,  was  born  in  Franklin  County, 
Pa.,  June  24,  1846,  being  one  of  the  children  born 
to  Jacob  and  Hettie  (Bear)  Cromer.  Their  fam- 
ily comprised  twelve  sons  and  three  daughters, 
and  eleven  of  the  family  are  still  living,  namely: 
Mary  J.,  George  W.,  Sebastian  B.,  Jerr>-  N., 
Laura,  David  K.,  Harry  S.,  Hannah  B.,  Jacob, 
Dennis  W.  and  James. 

The  paternal  grandfather  of  our  subject, 
George  Cromer,  was  a  native  of  Penn.sylvania, 
and  of  German  parentage.  He  reared  a  family 
of  ten  children,  seven  sons  and  three  daughters. 
His  life  work  was  that  of  an  agriculturist.  His 
death  occurred   in    Maryland,  when    at    the    ad- 


PORTRAIT  AND  HIOGRAFHICAL   RECORD. 


'5.i 


vamtil  aj;i.-  ol  ci>;ht>  \t.ar>.  Tlit-  in.iUriial  xraiul 
father  of  our  subject  Ixirc  the  name  of  Sebastian 
Bear.  He  was  also  of  Gennaii  descent,  antl  lK)rn 
in  the  Keystone  State.  Religiously,  he  was  a 
member  of  the  Dunkanl  Churih,  and  at  the  time 
of  his  death  was  seventy-eight  years  oUl. 

The  father  of  our  subject  wxs  als<i  a  farmer, 
and  continue<i  as  .such  during  his  entire  life. 
Both  he  and  his  wife  were  natives  of  Petni.sylva- 
nia.  In  the  winter  of  |S6  v  on  acctnmt  of  the  dev- 
a.stations  of  war  in  the  JieighlxirluxKl  of  their 
home,  and  on  account  of  the  destruction  of  nuich 
of  their  property,  they  removed  to  Illinois,  and 
located  in  Motitgomen  County.  The  father  pur- 
chased a  tract  of  one  hundred  and  .sixty  acres  of 
partially  improve*!  land  near  Irxing,  and  there 
he  made  his  home  for  four  years.  He  removed 
to  DuPage  County  in  1867,  and  settled  upon  a 
farm  near  Warrenville.  renting  the  jilace  for  two 
years.  In  1^69  he  Ixnight  a  good  farm  on  the 
county  line  between  Will  and  DuPage  Counties, 
and  on  this  place  he  coiitinue<l  to  reside  the  re- 
mainder of  his  life.  He  was  called  to  his  final 
home  in  1891,  when  he  had  attained  the  age  of 
three-score  years  and  ten.  He  was  a  faithful 
memlxjr  of  the  River  Brethren  Church,  and  for  a 
great  many  years  was  a  preacher  of  that  denomin- 
ation. His  wife  is  still  living  on  the  old  home- 
stead. 

George  W.  Cromer  pas.sed  his  lxj\hood  and 
youth  on  his  father's  old  homestead  in  Peinisyl 
vania,  and  there  acquired  a  practical  knowletlge 
of  how  to  carry  on  a  farm.  He  remained  under 
the  parental  r<x)f  until  after  reaching  his  majority, 
as  did  also  his  brothers.  He  received  a  gootl 
common-school  etlucation  in  the  Keystone  State, 
and  after  coming  t<>  Illinois  with  his  parents  at- 
tended HilLsljoro  Academy,  at  Hillslx>ro,  for  a 
time.  As  he  liad  been  trained  as  a  farmer,  it  was 
therefore  very  natural  that  he  should  ch<M>se  to 
contiime  as  such  when  beginning  the  serious 
business  of  life  on  his  own  account.  On  the  coni- 
pleti<jn  of  his  studies,  he  therefore  turned  his  at- 
tention to  agriculture  and  oj)eratctl  a  farm  in  Du- 
Page County  until  .September.  iHyi.  He  still 
owns  this  well-improved  farm,  which  comjirises 
one  hundred  acres,  ancl  in  addition  to  that  ii\mi>.:i 


g<jod  r«.->idenix-  |)ri>jK.-rt>  in  Turner.  In  thi-  i.iU  of 
i8yj  he  rented  his  farm  and  removetl  to  Turner, 
where  for  a  few  months  he  was  engaged  in  the 
lumlK-r  business.  He  then  l»ei-ame  interested  in 
the  Turner  Building  Association,  of  which  he 
was  manager  until  October  1,  1893,  when  he 
withdrew  from  the  .\ss<K-iation.  He  is  a  busi- 
ness man  of  gixKl  ability,  ami  suives-sfully  con- 
ducted the  affairs  of  tliat  institution  while  its 
manager. 

On  the  i.st  of  DecenilK'r,  1870,  Mr.  Cromer 
was  united  in  wedlock  with  Miss  I.ydia  J.  Finch. 
Her  jwrents,  William  and  Margaret  (Simpson) 
Finch,  are  natives  of  W-nnont  and  Fngland,  re- 
spectively. By  the  marriage  of  our  subject  and 
wife  three  children  have  l>een  lK)ni,  a  son  and 
two  daughters:  Ollie  L.,  Frank  }\.  and  Bertha  O. 

In  politics.  Mr.  Cromer  was  fonnerly  a  Repub- 
lii-an.  but  now  supj)orts  the  Prohibition  party. 
He  is  much  interested  in  the  cau.se  of  etlucation, 
and  served  as  School  Director  for  ten  years.  He 
and  his  wife  hold  membershij)  with  the  Baptist 
Church,  of  which  he  was  at  one  time  a  Deacon. 
He  is  a  man  who  numbers  many  friends,  who  es- 
teem him  highly  as  a  man  of  uiujuestioned  integ- 
rity and  genuine  worth  of  character. 


]^+^[ 


(31  I.I.KN  T.  RrSSHI.I,.  Among  the  younger 
r  I  men  of  DuPage  County  of  markeil  charac- 
/  I  ler  and  ability,  none  stand  more  prominent 
than  the  present  County  Sur\e_\or,  whose  name 
heads  this  record.  He  was  1>orn  in  Annaixjhs. 
Md.,  Decemlxrr  26,  1868,  and  is  a  s<in  of  Elijah 
James  and  Caroline  (  Brown  >  Rus.sell.  The  fa- 
ther was  a  native  of  Peinisylvania,  and  the  UKJther 
of  Maryland,  but  her  ix»ple  originally  came  from 
Connecticut.  The  Rus.sell  family  is  of  English 
origin.  The  grandfather  of  our  subject  servetl  in 
the  War  of  1812,  and  memlx-rs  of  the  family  were 
numlx-re<l  among  tlie  heroes  of  the  Revolution. 
As  s(K>n  as  the  first  call  for  voluntei-rs  came  for 
the  defense  of  the  Union,  Elijah  James  RiLssell 
entered  the  ser\'ice  as  a  nK-inl>er  of  the  First 
\T:ii\l.iiiil  Itifanlr\       Some ol  his  brothers enlistetl 


154 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


at  the  same  time  in  the  First  Manland  Confed- 
erate Infantry-,  and  the  two  regiments  were  en- 
gaged in  battle  at  Washington  The  father  of 
our  subject  was  a  land-owner  of  Maryland,  and 
died  in  Annapolis  in  1873,  when  about  forty-two 
j^ears  of  age.  His  widow  is  still  livmg  in  Balti- 
more. They  were  the  parents  of  four  children, 
three  of  whom  are  still  living;  John  T.,  Elijah  J. 
and  Allen  Traverse. 

Our  subject  was  only  about  six  years  of  age 
when  his  father  died,  and  with  his  mother  he  then 
removed  to  Baltimore,  residing  in  that  place  and 
in  Washington  for  some  time.  He  had  the  ad- 
vantages of  the  public  schools  of  the  two  cities, 
and  at  the  age  of  eleven  years  he  entered  the  Mc- 
Donough  School,  of  Baltimore  County,  a  prepara- 
tory- militarj-  institution.  There  he  continued  for 
four  years,  pursuing  the  regular  preparators- 
course  of  study.  Immediately  afterward  he  entered 
Johns  Hopkins  University  in  Baltimore,  from 
which  he  was  graduated  as  a  civil  engineer  at 
the  age  of  nineteen,  having  entered  the  school 
when  a  youth  of  sixteen.  Locating  in  Baltimore, 
Mr.  Russell  began  the  prosecution  of  his  chosen 
profession,  and  later  went  into  the  ofifice  of  the 
Western  Marj'land  Railroad  of  that  city,  where 
he  continued  for  about  three  months,  when  a 
vacancy  occurred  in  the  field,  and  he  was  made 
assi.stant  to  Maj.  Bowen,  Chief  Engineer  of  the 
Western  Marj-land  Railroad,  in  the  building  of 
the  Gettysburg  Short  Line,  which  nms  from  the 
Blue  Ridge  summit,  north  of  Gettysburg.  There 
his  ability  found  practical  application,  he  doing 
almost  all  the  work  himself. 

After  continuing  with  the  Western  Maryland  for 
about  nine  months,  Mr.  Russell  secured  an  appoint- 
ment at  Washington,  as  Assistant  United  States 
Engineer,  and  worked  in  that  capacity  in  sur- 
veying the  Missouri  River  from  Ft.  Bismarck, 
N.  Dak.,  to  Kansas  City.  The  object  of  thissur- 
•vey  was  to  make  improvements  along  the  banks 
so  as  to  protect  the  cities  and  towns  which  border 
the  river,  as  the  stream  is  subject  to  change  in  its 
course,  to  the  great  injury  of  the  places  where 
such  cut-offs  are  made.  The  engineer's  work 
was  to  ascertain  the  fall  in  the  river,  so  that  pro- 
tection could  be  made  when  needed.     Mr.  Russell's 


next  work  was  as  chief  of  an  engineering  corps  in 
the  building  of  the  railroad  on  the  Island  of 
Jamaica,  We.st  Indies.  He  came  to  DuPage 
County  on  the  7th  of  July,  1891,  taking  up  his 
residence  in  Wheaton,  and  was  elected  County 
Surveyor  in  November,  1892. 

On  the  17th  of  April,  1893,  Mr.  Russell  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Mi.ss  Minnie  G.  Ferr>-, 
daughter  of  Melancthon  and  Nellie  M.  Ferr\-,  of 
Wheaton.  Her  father  died  in  Aurora  about  four 
years  ago.  He  was  one  of  the  early  .settlers  of 
DuPage  County,  and  was  well  known  as  a  pros- 
perous farmer  and  an  honored  citizen.  Our  sub- 
ject and  his  wife  hold  membership  with  the 
Congregational  Church.  He  is  now  building  a 
pleasant  home  in  Evergreen  Park,  and  expects  to 
make  this  place  his  permanent  residence.  In  pol- 
itics, Mr.  Russell  is  a  stalwart  Republican  and  an 
inflexible  adherent  of  the  principles  of  his  party. 
He  is  a  young  man  of  fine  attainments  and  great 
natural  ability,  and  the  success  which  has  already 
come  to  him  argues  well  for  the  future. 


1=1 


""=) 


€4^ 


(S_ 


i^~ 


EOL.  JAMES  POMEROY  SANFORD  is  one 
of  the  prominent  citizens  of  Wheaton.  Du 
Page  County,  no  one  being  more  widely 
known  than  this  popular  humori.st,  lecturer,  and 
world's  traveler.  Seventeen  times  has  he  crossed 
the  Atlantic,  and  three  times  circumnavigated  the 
globe.  Possessing  an  obsen-ing  eye  and  reten- 
tive memory,  his  mind  is  .stored  with  valuable  and 
interesting  reminiscences  of  his  travels,  and  his  ir- 
resistible humor  and  fine  descriptive  powers  have 
placed  him  at  the  head  of  humorist  lecturers  on 
travel. 

The  Colonel  makes  friends  wherever  he  goes, 
and  has  many  warm  ones  in  this  community,  who 
will  be  glad  to  see  him  represented  in  the  history 
of  the  county.  He  was  bora  in  Seneca  County, 
X.  Y.,  November  11,  1837,  and  is  a  son  of  John 
and  Sarah  Sanford.  From  his  boyhood  he  seems 
to  have  been  destined  for  a  life  of  travel.  When 
a  lad  of  only  ten  summers  he  went  to  Brazil,  and 
during  the  four  succeeding  years  traveled  exten- 


PORTRAIT  AND  HIOOkArHICAL   RIICORD. 


'55 


sivi-Iy  thnm^li  South  AiiicrKa.  IK-  then  ri- 
tuniwl  U)  the  luitcil  Stales,  ami  took  up  his 
residence  in  Marslialltcnvn,  Iowa.  In  1.S58  he 
entere<l  the  Slate  rni\ersil>  in  Iowa  City,  and 
was  pursninn  his  studies  in  that  institution  at 
the  breaking  out  of  the  late  war.  Proniptetl  by 
jwtriotic  impulses,  he  aliandoneil  the  textbiM)k 
for  the  rifle,  and  in  1861  was  niustere<l  into  the 
ser\ice  as  a  n>enil)er  of  the  Second  Iowa  Cavalry  . 
He  enliste<l  as  a  jirivate.  but  when  inustere«l  out 
was  Colonel  of  the  Forty-seventh  Iowa  Infantry  . 
He  was  in  the  Amiy  of  the  West,  and  did  ser\-ice 
in  Miss«mri,  Mississippi,  Arkans;is.  Tennes.see 
and  Kentucky,  aiding  in  routing  Price  and 
Thomson.  He  sened  under  Gens.  Pope,  Hal- 
leek,  Shemian  and  Buford.  and  valiantly  followeil 
the  Old  Flag  from  1S61  until  1S64. 

Col.  Sanford  has  l)een  three  times  married. 
In  1855  he  marrictl  Miss  Malinda  Stewart,  a  na- 
tive of  Cynthiana.  Ky..  who  lived  but  a  few 
years  after  her  marriage.  She  bore  him  a  daugh- 
ter, wlio  grew  to  womanluMxl  and  lK"came  the 
wife  of  Bruce  Millar,  of  Marshalltown,  Iowa,  but 
was  called  to  her  final  rest  on  the  .same  day  that 
President  Garfield  pa.s.sed  away.  In  October, 
1H60,  he  was  united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Callie 
Wright,  of  Ft.  Madison,  Iowa,  who  died  after 
nineteen  years  of  happy  married  life,  leaving  a 
son.  George  P.  Sanford,  who  n)arried  Miss  Kate 
Rickert,  and  resides  in  Wheaton,  but  is  employed 
in  the  office  of  the  auditor  of  the  freight  depart- 
ment of  the  Chicago  &  Northwestern  Railroad 
Company,  at  Chicago.  In  1.S86  the  Colonel  was 
a  third  time  married,  when  Miss  Kffie  M. 
Vaughan,  who  was  l»oni  near  Toronto,  Out.,  Ije- 
came  his  wife. 

Since  the  war,  the  Colonel  has  sjK-iit  his  time  in 
traveling  and  lecturing,  and  for  the  pa.st  three 
years  has  made  his  home  in  Wheaton.  As  l)efore 
stated,  he  has  crf»ise<l  the  ocean  seventeen  times, 
and  some  c»ne  has  said  of  him  that  he  never 
travels  a  mile  without  .seeing  s<jmething  worth 
remenil)ering.  In  his  lecture  tours  he  is  greeteil 
with  immcn.sc  audiences,  and  the  aiiplause  of  the 
jx-ople  and  the  comments  of  the  press  all  attest 
his  popularity  with  the  public.  Col.  Sanford 
looks    on    the    bright    side,    and    is  not   onl\    m 


orator  liut  a  liumorist.  Among  his  well-known 
lectures  are  those  on  "Old  Times  and  New," 
"Walks  in  Rome,"  "Walks  in  Palestine,"  ".My 
Travels  in  Japan  and  China,"  "Stories  and 
Story-tellers"  and  "  Our  Whole  Country. "  All 
places  have  been  visite<l  by  him,  c<iunlries  l>oth 
civili/.eil  and  uncivilizeil,  ami  that  which  he  sees 
he  presents  to  others  in  such  vivid  word  pictures, 
that  the  hearer  can  hardly  realize  that  he  has  not 
l<K)ketl  upon  the  original  scene.  The  lectures  of 
Col.  Sanford  are  not  only  humorous  and  enter- 
taining, but  are  instructive  as  well.  His  are 
gifts  that  few  men  j)osses.s — wit,  humor,  elo- 
quence and  true  oratory  place  him  at  tlie  head  of 
the  lecture  platform.  It  has  been  said  that  his 
suix'c-ss  is  largely  due  to  his  warm  heartetlness 
and  his  interest  and  sympathy  with  all  created 
things.  His  humanity  is  as  broad  as  the  world, 
and  he  is  so  really,  truly  and  thoroughly  human, 
that  all  humanity  is  drawn  irresistibly  to  him. 
He  has  never  become  a  wealthy  man,  for,  rich  in 
human  feeling,  he  is  always  ready  to  give  more 
than  he  receives,  and  his  generosity  prevents  him 
from  becoming  a  millionaire. 


-f=j 


'DWARD  U.  HOWK,  a  well-known  and 
^  much  respected  citizen  of  Turner,  is  Secre- 
tary of  the  Turner  Building  As.sociation  and 
has  done  much  in  the  developnient  of  this  place. 
He  is  a  native  of  the  Green  Mountain  State,  hav- 
ing Ix-en  lK)ni  in  Castleton,  Noveml)cr  29.  1858. 
He  is  a  son  of  John  and  Helen  i  HarlK-r »  Howe, 
who  were  Ixjth  likewi.se  natives  of  \'ermont.  He 
is  the  only  diild  of  this  union,  and  his  mother 
died  while  he  was  still  in  infancy. 

John  Howe,  the  father  of  our  subject,  was  a 
lawyer  by  i)rofession  and  was  eiigagetl  in  practice 
at  Ca.stleton,  \t.,  for  many  years  with  go<Kl  suc- 
cess. Alxjut  the  year  1870,  he  went  South  and 
sjK-iit  eight  years  in  Florida,  where  he  was  engagi-il 
in  the  lundx-'r  business.  Snbse«|uentl>  .  he  returnetl 
to  Castlelon,  where  he  resumed  the  practice  of 
law.  For  two  years  he  ser\e«l  as  Probate  Judge. 
ift.T  ulii.b  In-  actid   in   the   capacit)    of   County 


156 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


Clerk  of  Rutland  County  until  his  death.  He  was 
a  soldier  in  the  late  Civil  War,  belonging  to  a 
Vermont  regiment,  and  was  an  active  participant 
in  the  first  terrible  battle  of  Bull  Run.  In  both 
peace  and  war  he  was  a  true  patriot  and  a  thor- 
oughly honorable  citizen.  For  his  second  wife, 
Mr.  Howe  married  Miss  Helen  Hunt,  by  whom 
he  had  three  sons  and  a  daughter:  Henry  H., 
William  F.,  Charles  and  Helen,  the  two  latter  be- 
ing now  deceased.  His  death,  which  occurred  in 
June,  1893,  at  the  age  of  fifty-nine  years  and  some 
month.s,  has  been  sincerely  lamented  bj-  his  many 
friends  and  neighbors.  He  was  prominent  in  the 
Masonic  fraternity,  and  in  politics  was  a  Republi- 
can. He  was  a  .son  of  Zimri  Howe,  a  native  of 
Vermont,  and  also  a  prominent  attorney.  At  the 
time  of  his  death  he  was  Probate  Judge.  He  lived 
to  reach  the  good  old  age  of  .seventy-five  years. 
Religiou.sly,  he  held  membership  with  the  Con- 
gregational Church.  His  family  comprised  only 
two  children,  a  son  and  a  daughter. 

Edward  B.  Howe  whose  name  heads  this  sketch 
continued  to  reside  at  his  birthplace  until  he  was 
five  years  old,  when  he  went  to  West  Haven,  Vt., 
to  live  with  the  parents  of  his  step-mother.  With 
them  he  remained  until  he  was  eighteen  years  of 
age,  and  was  given  the  benefits  of  a  good  education. 
When  a  young  man  he  attended  the  Lake  Forest 
Academy,  and  owing  to  his  diligence  as  a  student 
he  managed  to  acquire  a  vers-  good  education. 
For  about  five  years  after  leaving  school  he  en- 
gaged in  farming  by  the  month  near  Batavia,  Kane 
County. 

The  marriage  of  Mr.  Howe  and  Miss  MarciaJ. 
Manville  was  celebrated  on  the  29th  of  Jaiuiary, 
1885.  Mrs.  Howe  is  a  daughter  of  Russell  and 
Julia  (Smith)  Manville.  The  union  of  our  sub- 
ject and  his  estimable  wife  has  been  blessed  with  a 
little  daughter,  Mary  McMahan.  The  mother  is 
a  lady  of  culture  and  refinement  and  is  a  valuable 
helpmate  to  her  husband.  She  presides  over  their 
pleasant  home  with  grace,  and  is  a  genial  hostess. 

In  regard  to  politics,  Mr.  Howe  is  an  advocate 
of  the  principles  and  nominees  of  the  Republican 
party.  Fraternally,  he  is  a  member  of  J.  B. 
Turner  Lodge  No.  420,  I.  O.  O.  F.,  and  also  be- 
longs to  Elgin  Encampment.     He  owns  a  good 


residence  property  in  Turner  and  is  making  a 
good  success  of  the  Turner  Building  Association, 
with  which  he  is  officially  connected.  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Howe  are  received  in  the  best  social  circles 
of  Turner,  and  religiously  are  members  of  the  Con- 
gregational Church,  of  which  our  subject  is  a 
Trustee.  They  are  active  in  church  and  benevo- 
lent enterprises,  and  number  a  host  of  warm 
friends  and  acquaintances,  who  esteem  them  highly 
for  their  true  worth. 


^1 


^^^ 


[^^ 


^AMES  W.  McKEE,  who  resides  on  section 
I  32,  Winfield  Township,  was  born  on  the  farm 
Q)  which  is  now  his  home,  February  9,  1839, 
and  is  a  worthy  representative  of  an  honored 
pioneer  family.  His  parents,  David  and  Sarah 
(Ward)  McKee,  were  natives  of  Virginia  and 
New  York,  respectively,  and  the  former  was  of 
Scotch-Irish  descent.  He  was  twice  married,  and 
by  the  fir.st  union  had  a  son,  Stephen  J.,  who 
died  in  1878.  By  the  second  marriage  were  born 
the  following  children:  Wealthy,  wife  of  Chester 
C.  Becknell,  of  Cedar  Springs,  Mich.;  James  W.; 
and  Carrie  A.,  wife  of  Daniel  D.  Fisher,  Judge  of 
the  Circuit  Court  of  St.  Louis.  The  father  of 
this  family  remained  in  his  native  State  until  nine 
3-ears  of  age  and  then  went  to  Pennsylvania. 

When  a  youth  of  thirteen,  our  subject  went  to 
Cincinnati,  Ohio,  where  his  father  bound  him  out 
for  a  seven-years  apprenticeship  to  a  blacksmith. 
He  worked  for  his  board  and  clothes,  and  was 
employed  in  a  large  .shop,  of  which  he  acted  as 
foreman  during  the  la.st  few  years  of  his  service. 
He  then  went  on  the  ' '  Lady  Washington, ' '  a 
.steamer  running  between  New  Orleans  and  St. 
Louis,  and  in  the  spring  of  1822  hired  to  the 
Govennnent  to  go  to  Ft.  Dearborn — the  future 
city  of  Chicago.  He  was  in  the  Government  em- 
ploy for  eight  years,  doing  blacksmithing  for  the 
Indians,  according  to  a  treat}-  stipulation.  Chi- 
cago at  that  time  was  only  an  Indian  village.  He 
cros.sed  the  Calumet  River  in  an  Indian  canoe 
made  of  birch  bark,  and  by  the  bridle  held  his 
horse,  which  swam  the  stream.     In   1828,  he  be- 


PORTRAIT  AND  KIOGRAPHICAI,    RHCURD. 


'57 


came  mail-oiirricr  for  the  (.luv(.Tnim.-m  lK.-t\vct.-ii 
Ft.  Wayne,  liui.,  aiul  ChiaiK;<>-  He  iiia<lc  the 
trip  once  a  month  on  horseback,  carrjinR  his 
mail  l>ati;,  campinj;  equipments,  and  a  ^nn  with 
which  to  shiH)t  game  for  KhxI.  At  night  Mother 
Nature  fumishe<i  him  a  betl  and  the  next  moniing 
he  would  resume  his  travels.  It  is  related  that 
on  one  otvasion  while  carrying  the  mail,  darkness 
overtook  him  when  about  twelve  miles  .south  of 
Chicago,  and  on  clearing  the  snow  away  with  one 
of  his  snowshoes  to  make  a  Imlging  platx-  for  the 
night,  he  found  the  dead  body  of  a  man,  who  had 
evidently  got  lost  on  the  prairie  and  jx-'rished  in 
the  stonn.  He  pitched  his  tent  near  by.  and  in 
the  moniing  cut  some  brush  with  which  to  mark 
the  spot.  Alxiut  a  month  later  he  returned,  in 
company  with  others,  li>r  the  pur]H)se  of  removing 
the  remains,  and  found  that  the  wolves  had  eaten 
the  flesh  all  ofT  the  bones,  leaving  nothing  but  the 
skeleton,   to  which  they  gave  a  decent  burial. 

In  1834  Mr.  McKee  came  to  DuPage  County, 
and  located  ujion  a  part  «>f  the  farm  now  ownetl 
bv  our  subject.  He  purchasetl  four  hundred 
acres  on  sections  31  and  32,  VVinfield  Township, 
at  $1.25  per  acre,  and  in  the  woods  erectetl  a  log 
cabin.  He  could  talk  the  Indian  language  very 
fluently.  After  coming  to  this  county  he  estab- 
lished a  blacksmith  shop,  which  hecarrietlon  in 
connection  with  farming.  He  served  in  the 
Black  Hawk  War,  was  a  Whig  and  Republican 
in  politics,  and  was  a  memlK-r  of  the  Rajnisi 
Church.  He  died  April  8,  1881,  and  was  laid  to 
rest  in  Big  Woods  Cemetery.  Mr.  McKee  used  to 
relate  that  when  he  went  to  Chicago  in  1822,  the 
bones  of  those  who  were  slain  in  the  mas.sacre  at 
Ft.  Dearborn  in  1812  were  still  lying  on  the 
ground,  alxmt  two  miles  .south  of  the  fort,  and  he 
as.si.sted  in  burning  the  bones.  An  honoreil  i)io 
neer,  Mr.  McKee  was  prominently  connected  with 
the  ujibuilding  of  this  connnunity ,  and  his  name  is 
insei>arably  associatetl  with  it-s  history  .  His  wife, 
the  mother  of  our  subject,  was  Ixini  in  1816. 
They  were  married  in  1H36,  and  she  died  March 
22,  J 886,  lieing  laid  to  rest  by  the  side  of  lur  bus 
band. 

No  other  home  has  James  W.  MiKee   known 
than    LhiPage  County.     He  attende*!  its  di>,iriit 


scluKils  during  hi>  t><i>h<«'<i.  and  coniiilelcd  his 
education  in  Whealon  College.  He  was  reare<l 
among  the  wild  scenes  of  the  frontier  and  experi- 
enced all  the  hard.sliips  and  trials  of  pioneer  life. 
At  the  age  of  twenlv -two  he  left  home  and  pur- 
chased forty  acres  of  land.  His  father  also  gave 
him  forty  acres.  The  lK)nndaries  of  his  fann 
have  since  lx*en  extemled,  until  it  now  comprises 
one  hundred  and  eighty-five  acres  of  valuable 
land,  which  is  under  a  high  state  of  cultivation 
and  well  improved.  He  carries  on  general  tann- 
ing and  stock-raising  and  is  also  engage<l  in  the 
dairy  business. 

Mr.  McKee  was  married  November  28,  i860, 
to  Miss  Frances  I.,.  Bird.  They  have  no  family 
of  their  own  but  have  an  adopted  daughter,  Cath- 
erine. In  politics,  our  subject  has  always  Ix-en  a 
stanch  supix)rter  of  the  Republit-an  party.  He  is 
a  menilx'r  of  the  Odd  Fellows'  hnige,  and  his 
wife  lx;longs  to  the  Bapti.st  Church.  This  worthy 
couple  are  prominent  citizens  of  the  community, 
and  their  well-six-nt  lives  have  gaine<l  for  them 
the  high  regard  of  all  with  whom  they  have  been 
brought  in  contact.  Mr.  McKee  has  not  only 
been  an  eye-witness  of  the  growth  and  develop- 
ment of  the  Cf)unty  for  half  a  century,  but  is  also 
numbered  among  its  founders. 


-S5 


^-f^ 


t^i- 


ta^ 


Ell.VRLUS  GARY  HATTIN,  a  farmer  resid- 
ing on  .section  i,  BUxjniingdale  Township, 
has  the  honor  of  Ix-inga  nati\eof  this  county, 
for  he  was  born  on  the  farm  where  he  now  resides. 
May  16,  1855.  His  father,  William  Battin,  was 
a  native  of  Devonshire,  Fngland.  there  s]>ent  the 
days  of  his  boyhood  and  youth,  and  wedded  Mary- 
Ann  Baker,  who  was  also  a  native  of  I)evon.shire. 
In  1847,  he  determined  t(»  seek  a  home  in  the 
New  World,  and,  cros.sing  the  broad  Atlantic, 
made  his  way  to  DuPage  County,  where  he  pur- 
chase<l  land  and  Ix-gan  the  development  of  a  farm, 
upon  which  his  son  now  reside>.  He  first  became 
owner  of  eighty  acres,  and  then  added  to  it  an 
a<ljoining  tract  of  forty  acres.  He  made  gotxl  in! 
provements  n[K»n  it,  built  fences,  ami  transfi>rnu-cl 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


158^ 

the  raw  prairie  into  rich  and  fertile  fields.  He 
knew  no  other  home  during  his  entire  re.sidence 
in  America.  His  death  there  occurred  in  Decem- 
ber, 1884,  at  the  age  of  .seventy-two  years.  His 
wife  was  called  to  her  final  rest  in  February, 
1872,  and  both  lie  buried  in  Greenwood  Cemeterj-, 
of  Bloomingdale,  where  marble  monuments  mark 
their  la.st  resting-place.  He  was  an  active  and 
faithftil  member  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church,  and  served  as  Superintendent  of  the  Sun- 
day-school for  thirty  years.  All  charitable  and 
benevolent  enterprises  found  in  him  a  friend,  and 
the  poor  and  needy  were  never  turned  from  his 
door  empty-handed.  His  life  was  a  noble  and 
exemplary  one,  and  he  left  to  his  children  the 
priceless  heritage  of  a  good  name. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  the  seventh  in 
order  of  birth  in  a  family  of  three  .sons  and  five 
daughters,  all  of  whom  have  reached  years  of 
maturity.  The  days  of  his  bo\hood  and  youth 
were  .spent  upon  the  old  home  farm,  and  to  his 
father  he  gave  the  benefit  of  his  services  until  he 
had  attained  his  majority,  after  which  he  engaged 
in  clerking  in  Itasca  for  about  three  years.  The 
succeeding  three  years  were  .spent  on  the  old 
homestead.  He  was  next  employed  in  clerking  in 
Elgin  for  a  year.  In  the  spring  of  1883  he  went 
to  Iowa,  and  spent  about  two  years  with  his 
brother  on  a  farm  near  Iowa  Falls.  The  autumn 
of  1884  witnessed  his  return  home,  and  the  fol- 
lowing spring  he  went  to  Green  Lake,  Wis., 
where  he  spent  about  eight  months  on  a  farm, 
after  which  he  again  came  to  this  county. 

On  the  loth  of  Februan,-,  1887,  in  Iowa,  Mr. 
Battin  was  united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Florence 
Knowles,  a  native  of  Cortland  County,  N.  Y., 
and  a  daughter  of  Darius  Knowles,  who  brought 
his  family  to  DuPage  County  during  the  child- 
hood of  his  daughter,  and  lived  in  Bloomingdale 
Township  until  1880,  when  he  removed  to  Worth 
County,  Iowa.  In  Manley  he  engaged  in  the 
hotel  business  until  his  death,  in  1882.  For  sev- 
eral years  prior  to  her  marriage,  Mrs.  Battin  suc- 
cessfully engaged  in  teaching.  In  1887  the  young 
couple  took  up  their  residence  on  the  old  home- 
stead, which  is  owned  by  our  subject  and  his 
brother  John.     Since  that  time,   Mr.  Battin  has 


been  successfully  engaged  in  farming,  and  has 
made  many  improvements  upon  the  place  which 
add  both  to  its  value  and  attractive  appearance. 
The  home  has  been  blessed  with  two  bright  little 
daughters:  Nina  A.  and  Flossie  J. 

Since  becoming  a  voter,  Mr.  Battin  has  sup- 
ported the  men  and  measures  of  the  Republican 
party,  having  cast  his  first  Presidential  ballot  for 
R.  B.  Hayes.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Republi- 
can Central  Committee,  and  has  taken  quite  an 
active  part  in  politics,  doing  all  in  his  power  to 
promote  the  growth  and  insure  the  success  of  his 
party.  He  has  ever  been  a  friend  to  education, 
and  while  serving  as  a  member  of  the  School 
Board  has  done  much  effective  ser\-ice  in  its  in- 
terest. He  and  his  wife  are  leading  members  of 
the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  of  Meacham,  and 
he  is  a  charter  member  and  one  of  the  officers  of 
Itasca  Camp  No.  764,  M.  W.  A.  Almost  his  entire 
life  has  been  passed  in  this  county,  and  he  is 
widely  and  favorably  known  throughout  the  com- 
munitv  in  which  he  has  so  long  made  his  home. 


_=) 


-S) 


^H^ 


C=_ 


C=" 


HEODORE    M.   MANNING,    who  is  now 
engaged   in    farming    and    stock-raising  on 

section  26,  Winfield  Town.ship,  is  one  of  the 

prominent  and  highly  re.spected  citizens  of  this 
community.  He  was  born  in  Onondaga  County, 
N.  v.,  Februan-  19,  1836,  and  is  a  son  of  Rock- 
well and  Sarah  (Warner)  Manning,  who  were 
also  natives  of  Onondaga  County.  The  father 
was  of  English  descent.  He  resided  in  the  Em- 
pire State  until  1849,  when  he  came  to  DuPage 
County,  111.,  and  soon  purchased  land  near  War- 
renville.  He  also  .started  a  general  store  in  that 
place,  and  was  engaged  in  general  merchandising 
until  about  1878.  He  purchased  the  Warrenville 
Flouring  Mills,  which  he  operated  for  several 
years,  and  also  carried  on  a  .store  in  Wheaton.  He 
was  a  wide-awake  and  enterprising  business  man, 
who  carried  fonvard  to  successful  completion 
whatever  he  undertook.  He  began  life  a  poor 
boy,  working  as  a  farm-hand  by  the  month,  but 
became  a  prosperous  citizen.     In  politics,  he  was 


PORTRAIT  AND  HIOGRAPHICAI.    RKCORD. 


«59 


a  Rcpulilican;  scntni  a>  Ju>tKi- c.f  the  I'lait,  ami 
held  other  township  offii-es.  He  l>eloiij;e<l  to  the 
MastMiic  frateniity  and  the  Baptist  Chnrch.  and 
died  in  iSSo.  His  wife,  who  was  also  a  nien>lK.-r 
of  the  Baptist  Church,  passe<i  away  in  1890,  and 
both  were  interred  in  the  Warrenville  Cemetery  . 
At  the  age  of  fourteen  years,  The<Klore  ManniuK 
came  to  this  county,  and  attended  the  Warrenville 
Seminary,  where  he  acquired  a  good  business  ed- 
ucation, that  filtetl  him  for  the  responsible  duties 
of  life.  He  reniaine<l  under  the  parental  r<>>.f  until 
he  attained  his  majority,  and  then  carric<l  on  a 
store  in  Warrenville,  and  also  one  in  Sycamore 
for  ab«iut  four  years.  Before  beginning  business 
for  himself  he  had  served  as  a  clerk  in  his  father's 
store.  Subse<iuently.  Mr.  Manning  attended  the 
Chicago  I'nion  College  of  Law.  After  graduating 
from  the  latter  institution,  he  was  admitted  to  the 
Bar,  in  1865,  and  then  was  employe<l  as  a  collector 
for  a  mercantile  house  in  Chicago  for  two  years. 
He  then  became  a  partner  in  a  wholesale  fanc>- 
dry -goods  store  in  Chicago,  with  which  he  coti 
tinued  his  connection  for  atout  three  years,  when 
he  Ugan  the  practice  of  law  in  the  city.  He  was 
quite  successful,  and  continuetl  the  prosecution  of 
his  chosen  professi<m  for  about  twent>  >  ears. 

On  the  17th  of  December,  1857,  Mr.  Manning 
was  united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Man  D.  Jones. 
Three  children  were  l)om  unto  them:  Mary  A., 
wife  of  Clinton  Hoy,  of  Wheaton.  111. :  Walter  C, 
who  died  in  childhood;  and  Fre<lerick  P..  who 
resides  in  Tunier.  The  mother  died  February  3, 
1868.  and  Mr.  Manning  was  again  married.  Octo- 
ber 30,  1870,  his  second  union  being  with  Luc>- 
Tallxjtt,  who  died  Noveud>er  24.  1872.  He  was 
marrietl  July  3,  1S8S,  to  his  present  wife,  whose 
maiden  name  was  Mary  E.  Briggs.  Two  daugh- 
ters grace  this  union:   Grace  L.  and  Katherine. 

Mr.  Manning  exercises  his  right  of  franchise  in 
support  of  the  Republican  party,  but  has  never 
been  an  office-seeker,  preferring  to  give  his  entire 
time  to  his  business  interests.  For  the  past  six 
years  he  has  engaged  in  farming  and  horse- raising. 
He  owns  one  hundred  and  forty  acres  of  arable 
land,  pleasantly  situated  four  miles  southwest  of 
Wheaton.  The  many  improvements  found  there- 
on make  it  a  valuable  and  desirable  place.      Mr. 


Manning  i><  a  highly  edui-atid  and  cullureil  gen- 
tleman, who  kct-ps  well  infornie<l  <in  the  issues  of 
the  day,  and  wherever  he  goes  his  genial  manner 
wins  him  friend>.  He  has  long  Iteen  coiniectcd 
with  the  interests  of  Dul'age  County,  and  well 
deserves  representation  in  its  history. 


=^^ 


^-t-^ 


n^  illN  HUAK1\UV,  who  f<»r  a  nnmlier  of  years 
I  followed  fanning  in  DuPage  County,  but  is 
v2?  now  living  a  retire<l  life  in  Titnier,  claims 
England  as  the  land  of  his  birth,  which  iKX'urrecl 
in  Yorkshire,  near  Leeds,  Kebruarj-  27,  1823.  His 
father,  George  Rlakelv.  was  also  a  native  (»f  the 
same  countr\-,  and  followed  mining  thninghout 
his  entire  life.  His  death  occurred  in  England  in 
1862,  at  the  age  of  seventy-five  years.  He  was  a 
member  of  the  Wesleyan  Methodist  Church.  He 
was  joined  in  wedhxrk  with  Mary  Askwith.  who 
sun'ivetl  him  a  innnber  of  years.  She  was  al.soa 
member  of  the  .same  church  as  her  husband. 
Eight  children  were  bon>  of  their  union,  five  of 
whom  are  now  living,  Thomas,  Joseph,  John, 
Sijuire  and  James. 

In  his  native  land  the  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
reared  to  manhiKKl,  and  in  his  youth  no  event  of 
special  imptirtance  iKx-urreil.  At  an  early  age  he 
began  working  in  the  mines,  and  was  thus  em- 
ployed until  his  emigration  to  America.  Previ- 
ous to  that  event  otxurred  an  important  step  in 
his  life,  for  on  the  2d  of  February,  1M45,  he  le<l  to 
the  marriage  altar  Miss  Harriet  Hawden.daugliter 
of  Joseph  and  Jane  1  Barker)  Hawdeii. 

The  young  couple  l>egaii  their  domestic  life  in 
l\ngland,  but  after  four  years  tlie\-  detennine<l  to 
.seek  a  home  and  fortJine  in  America,  antl  crossed 
the  briny  deep  to  the  I'nited  States  in  company 
with  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Davi«l  Wanl.  On  landing, 
they  immediately  took  up  the  journey  across  the 
continent,  stopping  when  they  reacheil  DuPage 
County,  111.  The  railroad  was  not  then  com- 
plete<l.  They  locatetl  threv  miles  from  Tunter, 
and  in  this  connnunily  have  since  resideil.  For  a 
year  Mr  Blakely  worke«l  by  the  month  as  a  farm 
hand,  atul  then  jnir' Is  isi-,!   r.prt\    acres  of  loul    in 


i6o 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


which  he  afterwards  added  twent!.--four  acres  by 
additional  purchase.  Turning  his  attention  to 
the  cuUivation  of  his  farm,  he  made  it  a  valuable 
tract,  and  continued  its  improvement  until  1891, 
when  he  sold  out  and  came  to  Turner.  During 
those  years  of  labor,  he  had  accumulated  a  consid- 
erable competency,  and  was  now  possessed  of  the 
means  which  would  enable  him  to  lay  aside  bu.si- 
ness  cares  and  live  retired  in  the  enjoyment  of  the 
fruits  of  his  former  toil. 

Mr.  Blakely  is  independent  in  politics,  prefer- 
ring to  hold  himself  free  to  support  the  candidates 
he  believes  best  qualified  for  the  positions, regard- 
less of  party  affiliations.  Himself  and  wife  are 
members  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  and 
are  highly  respected  citizens,  well  desen'ing  of 
representation  in  this  volume.  His  life  has  been 
a  bus\-  one,  well  and  worthil\-  spent. 


_=]. 


^^^ 


1=" 


JOSEPH  A.   XORRIS,    who   since    1864  has 
I    been  connected  with  the  Western  Union  Tele- 
G)  graph  Company,  and  its  predeces.sor,  tliellH- 
nois  &  Missi.s.sippi  Telegraph   Company,  on   con- 
struction and  repair  work,  comes  from  the  neigh- 
boring State  of  Indiana.     He  was  born  in  Ko.sci- 
usco   County,    August   5,    1838,  and  is  a  son  of 
William  and  Ehzabeth  (Knox)  Norris,  the  former 
a  native  of  Ohio,  and  the  latter  of  Virginia.     Mr. 
Norris  was  a  farmer  and  Indian  trader.     He  re- 
moved to  the  Hoosier  State  in  1833,  locating  near 
Leesburgh,  where  he  lived    until    1857.     In    the 
meantime  he  made  a  trip  to  California,  where  he 
engaged  in   mining  with  moderate   success.     In 
1857  he  removed  to  Rochester,  Mo.,  but  was  not 
long  pennitted  to  enjoy  his  new  home,   his  death 
occurring  the  following  j-ear  at  the  age  of  forty- 
two.      His  wife  died  in  1856,  at  the  age  of  thirty- 
six.     She  was  a  member  of  the  Baptist   Church. 
Their  family  numbered  seven  children,  three  sons 
and  four  daughters,  of  whom  five  are  now  living, 
namely:  Joseph  A.;  John;   Melvina,  wife  of  Joel 
Strevey,   of  Fulton,    Mo.;  Vilena,  wife  of  Henry 
Keefer,  of  Pierceton,    Ind.;  and  Rebecca,  wife  of 
Charles  Renfro,  of  Clinton,  Mo. 


The  paternal  grandfather  of  our  subject,  Joseph 
Norris,  was  a  native  of  Mar^-land.  He  was  a 
farmer,  and  followed  that  pursuit  throughout  his 
entire  life.  During  the  Revolution  he  aided  the 
colonies  in  their  struggle  for  independence.  In 
1833  he  emigrated  westward  to  Indiana,  where 
he  died  at  a  very  advanced  age.  The  maternal 
grandfather,  John  Knox,  was  born  in  the  North 
of  Ireland,  and  belonged  to  the  celebrated  Knox 
family  of  Presbyterian  faith.  He  also  died  in  the 
Hoosier  State,  when  about  sixty  years  of  age. 

Mr.  Norris  whose  name  heads   this  record  was 
reared  in  the  county  of  his  nativity,  the  days  of 
his  boyhood  and  youth  being  quietly  passed  on 
his  father's  farm.     He  was  educated  in  the  pub- 
lic  .schools   of  the   neighborhood,  and  remained 
with  his  parents  until  a  youth  of  seventeen,  when 
he  started   out  in  life  for  himself.     He  followed 
various  pursuits  until   1862,  when   he  enlisted  in 
Capt.   Johnson's  company  of  unattached  Texas 
cavalrs-   and  served  twentj--six  months.     On  the 
expiration  of  that  period  he  went  to  Springfield, 
111.,    and    for    a   time  was  in   the  employ  of  the 
United  States  Government.     In    1864  he  began 
working  for  the  Illinois  &  Mississippi  Telegraph 
Company,  and  later  for  the  Western  Union  Tele- 
o-raph  Company,   on  the  construction  and  repair 
of  the  telegraph,  and  in  labor  along  this  line  has 
since  devoted  his  energies. 

On   the  29th   of  September,    1866,  Mr.  Norris 
was  united  in  marriage  with  Mi.ss  Henrietta  Wat- 
son, daughter  of  Charles  and  Jane  (Remington) 
Wat,son,    of  Turner.     She  was  bom  in  Spring- 
field, Bradford  County,   Pa.,   November  7,  1843, 
and  has  been  a  resident  of  Turner  since   1854,  be- 
1   ing  numbered  therefore  among  its  earlj-  settlers. 
'    Five  children  have  been  bom  unto  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
!   Norris.  Floyd  J. ,  who  married  Miss  Tes.sie  Clear}-, 
1   of  Toledo,  Ohio,  is  a  train  dispatcher  for  the  Chi- 
cago   &    Northwestern    Railroad   Company,   and 
makes  his  home  in   Chicago.     The  other  mem- 
bers of  the  family  are:  Roy  W.,  Harry  C,   Clyde 
J.  and  Bessie  M. 

In  1866  Mr.  Norris  came  to  Turner,  and  has 
now  made  his  home  in  this  place  for  twenty- 
seven  years.  In  politics,  he  is  a  Republican  and 
has  been  honored  with  several  public  offices.    He 


PORTRAIT  AND  BlOGRAI'HICAU   RliCORD. 


i6i 


9en*ed  as  X'illage  Trustee  for  several  terms,  and 
is  at  present  a  member  of  the  Sclux)l  Board.  In 
whatever  jxjsition  he  has  been  callc<l  u\nm  to  fill, 
he  has  always  discharged  his  duties  with  a  prompt- 
ness and  fidelity  that  have  won  him  the  Lt)mmeuda- 
tion  of  all  cxmcemetl.  His  long  continuance  with 
the  telegraph  conjixmy  indicates  his  faithfulness 
in  their  scr\icx-. 


\^r^ 


[S_ 


NINRY  STHRMXG  WILLIAMS,  deceased, 
A  as  Iwni  in  Jeffers^Mi  County.  X.  Y.,  on 
the  J3th  of  September.  iSio.  and  was  a  son 
of  William  and  Mar>  y  Starring  t  Williams,  the 
father  a  native  of  Connecticut,  and  the  mother  of 
New  York.  The  latters  father.  Henry  Starring, 
was  the  first  Judge  of  Herkimer  County,  and  was 
a  very  prominent  and  influential  citizen. 

Upon  his  father's  farm  our  subject  grew  to 
manhood,  ar.d  in  the  common  schools  acquired 
his  education.  He  then  began  life  for  himself. 
and  lived  in  the  Empire  State  until  1836.  which 
year  witnessed  his  emigration  westward.  He 
Iccateil  on  a  farm,  which  his  father  entered  fi-om 
the  Goveniment  in  DuPage  County.  In  1850, 
attracte<l  by  the  discovery  of  gold  in  California, 
he  went  overland  to  the  Pacific  Slope,  making  the 
journey  with  horse-teams,  and  after  four  months 
of  travel  reached  his  destination.  He  located  at 
what  was  then  Hangtown,  but  is  now  Placer\ille. 
and  engaged  in  prospecting  and  mining.  There 
he  remained  for  five  years,  and  met  with  a  fair 
degree  of  success.  In  1.S53  he  returned  to  I>u 
Page  County,  and  the  following  year  removed  to 
the  old  homestead  on  which  his  widow  now  re- 
sides. 

On  the  28th  of  August,  1856,  Mr.  Williams 
was  united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Sarah  J. 
Welty.  For  many  years  they  traveleti  life's 
joun-.ey  together,  sharing  with  each  other  its 
jovs  and  stjrrows.  its  adversity  and  prosperity, 
but  after  thirty-five  years  of  happy  we<lde<l  life 
the  hasband  was  called  to  the  home  bejond,  on 
the  23th  of  July.  iHyi,  and  his  remains  were  laid 
to  rest  in  Warreiiville  Cemetery  . 


.\lr.  Williams  was  in  early  life  a  memlieruf  the 
Baptist  Church.  In  p:  litics,  he  vote<l  with  the 
Republican  jwrty,  but  was  never  an  ofTue- seeker, 
preferring  ti>  devote  his  time  and  attention  to  his 
bu.siness  interests,  in  which  he  was  quite  sui-ces- 
ful.  At  the  time  of  his  death  he  was  the  owner 
of  three  hundred  and  forty-two  acres  of  valuable 
land,  all  in  Winfiehl  Township.  A  public-spir- 
ite<l  and  progressive  citizen,  he  tof>k  an  active 
interest  in  everything  pertaining  to  the  welfare 
of  the  community.  an<l  did  all  in  his  power  to- 
ward its  upbuilding.  His  l<«vs  was  widely  and 
deeply  numrnetl.  Mrs.  Williams  ktill  resides 
upon  the  oU\  home  farm,  and  is  surroundetl  by 
many  warm  friends,  who  esteem  her  highly  for 
her  many  excellencies  t)f  character. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Williams  never  had  any  family 
of  their  own.  but  an  adopted  daughter.  Florence 
B.,  from  early  infancy  received  their  watchful 
care  and  kindness.  They  gave  her  good  educa- 
tional advantages,  and  she  is  now  a  great  comfort 
to  her  mother  in  her  tleclining  years,  and  of  very 
material  assistance  in  the  management  of  her 
large  estate.  Mrs.  Williams  and  daughter  are 
memliers  of  the  Methotlisl  Episcopal  Church  of 
Warren  vi  lie. 


=-^^^^m=^ 


|i:SLEY  CHADWICK.  one  of  the  enter 
prising  fanners  of  this  county,  resides  on 
section  2T,.  Wayne  Township,  where  he  is 
engaged  in  operating  a  farm  of  one  hundred 
acres.  This  is  a  well-improved  and  highly  cul- 
tivate<l  place,  supplie<l  with  go<Kl  buildings  and 
all  the  acces-sories  and  conveniences  found  upon 
a  mo<lel  farm. 

Mr.  Chadwick  wa-"  Ikuii  IK-cemlK-r  i\.  1^59, 
and  is  the  only  son  of  George  M.  Chadwick.  who 
was  bom  in  Beiuiington,  Vt.,  in  1.S36.  The  lat- 
ter came  to  Illinois  with  his  father.  Richanl 
Chadwick.  in  1S40,  the  family  settling  in  Du- 
Page County,  where  the  gran<lfather  of  our  sub- 
ject entered  the  land  on  which  Wesley  now  re- 
sides.    As  it  was  Govenuueiit  land,   it  was  en- 


1 62 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


tireh'  unimproved,  and  he  at  once  began  its 
development.  He  placed  acre  after  acre  under 
the  plow,  enclosed  his  fields  with  well-kept 
fences,  and  opened  up  the  farm  upon  which  he 
spent  the  last  days  of  his  life.  He  was  one  of  the 
honored  pioneer  settlers  of  the  coinnuinit.\-,  and 
was  a  worth},-  member  of,  and  for  many  years  a 
Deacon  in,  the  Congregational  Church.  He 
passed  away  November  15,  1851. 

George  M.  Chadwick  was  but  fifteen  years  old 
when  his  father  died,  and  was  thus  left  with  all 
the  re.sponsibilities  of  the  head  of  a  family.  He 
made  it  one  of  the  first  duties  of  his  life  to  carry 
out  the  wishes  of  his  father  in  caring  for  an  elder 
invalid  sister,  even  to  the  sacrificing  of  his  own 
personal  interests.  He  was  united  in  marriage 
with  Miss  Dyanthia  Lilley,  a  native  of  this 
county,  and  a  daughter  of  Grin  Lilley,  one  of  the 
early  settlers  of  Bloomingdale  Township. 

They  began  their  domestic  life  on  the  farm  in 
DuPage  County,  where  they  continued  to  reside 
for  a  number  of  years.  On  account  of  poor 
health,  and  also  that  his  children  might  have  the 
advantages  of  good  .schools,  he  moved  to  Whea- 
ton.  111.,  where  he  resided  until  his  death.  He 
was  a  man  of  quiet  and  reserved  disposition,  and, 
although  a  man  of  intelligence  and  great  natural 
abilities,  he  was  loth  to  have  his  friends  put  him 
forward  or  make  him  conspicuous.  He  passed 
away  Februarj'  9,  1881,  leaving  a  wife  and  two 
children,  who  still  survive  him.  His  daughter, 
Edith  L.,  is  a  graduate  of  Wheaton  College, 
and  with  her  mother  resides  in  Wheaton. 

The  gentleman  whose  name  heads  this  record 
spent  the  days  of  his  early  boyhood  on  the  farm. 
His  primary  education  was  supplemented  by  studj- 
in  the  Wheaton  High  School,  after  which  he 
spent  several  terms  in  Wheaton  College.  He 
taught  school  for  a  number  of  jears,  and  was 
very^  successful  in  that  line  of  work.  In  1885  he 
returned  to  the  farm  and  has  since  carried  on 
agricultural  pursuits. 

On  the  27th j)f  October,  1887,  in  Batavia,  Kane 
County,  111.,  Wesley  Chadwick  married  Miss 
Gertrude  A.  Ford,  who  was  born  and  reared  in 
Massachusetts.  She  there  began  her  education, 
which  she  completed  in  Wheaton  and  the  North- 


em  Indiana  Normal  College.  They  have  three 
children  :  Harlow  Irving,  Melville  Dore  and  Clif- 
ford Wayne. 

In  his  political  views,  Mr.  Chadwick  is  inde- 
pendent, and  casts  his  ballot  for  the  candidate 
whom  he  thinks  best  qualified  for  the  office.  The 
cause  of  education  has  ever  found  in  him  a  warm 
friend,  and  he  is  now  ser\-ing  as  a  member  of  the 
School  Board.  Him.self  and  wife  are  members  of 
the  Methodist  Church  of  Turner,  111.  He  is  a 
Master  Mason,  and  he  and  his  wife  are  members 
of  Henrietta  Chapter  No.  162,  O.  E.  S.,  of  Turner, 
111.  Mr.  Chadwick  is  comparatively  a  young  man, 
with  probably  much  of  his  life  before  him,  and, 
with  his  past  record  as  a  criterion,  we  know  that 
his  future  will  be  a  successful  and  honorable  one. 


1-^+^1 


~DWARD  ROTERMUND,  grain,  lumber 
^  and  coal  dealer  of  Addi.son,  is  one  of  the 
^  leading  and  influential  citizens  of  this  village. 
DuPage  County  numbers  him  among  her  native 
sons,  for  he  was  born  in  Addison  Town.ship,  on 
the  14th  of  March,  1849.  He  is  the  only  child  of 
Christian  and  Helena  (Fiene)  Rotermund.  The 
father  was  bom  in  Hanover,  Germany,  and  in 
1845  he  became  a  resident  of  this  county,  where 
he  married  Miss  Fiene,  who  was  also  a  native  of 
Hanover,  and  came  to  Illinois  during  her  girlhood 
days.  They  began  their  domestic  life  upon  a 
farm  in  Addison  Township,  and  to  the  cultivation 
and  improvement  of  his  land  Mr.  Rotermund  de- 
voted his  energies  until  his  death,  which  occurred 
in  1 85 1.  His  widow  afterwards  married  again, 
becoming  the  wife  of  H.  Weber. 

Edward  Rotermund  remained  with  his  mother 
and  step-father  until  the  latter's  death,  in  1874. 
His  time  was  passed  in  the  usual  manner  of 
farmer  lads,  and  his  education  was  begun  in  the 
district  schools  of  the  neighborhood,  but  subse- 
quently he  attended  Eastman's  Business  College, 
and  by  his  course  of  study  in  that  institution  was 
well  fitted  for  a  commercial  life.  He  entered 
upon  his  business  career  in  1872,  embarking  in 
general  merchandising,  as  a  partner  of  his  half- 


PORTRAIT  AND  UlOGRAl'HICAl,    RIXORD. 


•63 


brother.  For  ei^Iiteen  yean*  he  devote<l  his  ener- 
gies to  selling  gcHxls,  buihliiig  up  an  excellent 
trade,  hut  in  1S90  he  M)ld  dut  and  lK.-j;an  dealing 
in  and  shipping  >;rain,  fee<l.  luinl>er  and  cial. 

In  1S7S,  Mr.  Rotennund  was  united  in  mar- 
riajje  with  Miss  lunih  (iray.  daughter  of  Henry 
and  I.^iui.s;i  Gra\ ,  an»l  a  native  of  York  Town- 
ship, Du Page  Comity.  They  have  Ijeeonie  the  jwr- 
ents  of  two  sons,  August  and  Ivdwin.  He  and 
his  wife  are  widely  known  in  this  ainununity,  and 
have  the  wann  regard  of  their  many  friends. 
The  esteem  in  which  they  are  held  is  well  de- 
served. 

In  his  political  affiliations,  Mr.  Rotennund  is  a 
Democrat,  hut  has  never  Ix-en  an  aspirant  for 
official  honors,  preferring  to  devote  his  time  to  his 
husiness  interests  and  the  enjoyment  of  his  home. 
He  holds  memt)ership  with  the  Ivvangelical 
Church,  ser\'es  as  cashier  of  the  ptKjr  of  the  church, 
and  takes  a  leading  and  active  part  in  benevolent 
and  charitable  work.  He  is  a  man  of  giKid  busi- 
ness ability,  and  the  able  management  of  his  af- 
fairs has  brought  him  a  substantial  proiK-rty. 


=3^  ?">[=" 


QnriRH  LOriS  STrKNKKL,  Justice  of  the 
2\  IV-ace  of  Addison,  DuPage  County,  and  a 
yy/  retired  merchant,  was  Ixjrn  in  Addison  Town- 
shij)  on  the  6th  of  October.  183S,  and  is  a  s<jn  of 
Frederick  and  Dorothy  (  Knigge »  Stuenkel.  both 
of  whom  were  natives  of  Hanover,  Ciermany. 
The  father  was  Ixjni  in  1800,  and  re.sided  in  the 
Old  Country  until  1836,  when  he  crossed  the 
Atlantic  to  .America,  and  took  up  his  residence  in 
DuPage  County,  111.  Locating  in  .\ddi.son  Town- 
ship, he  iK-came  one  of  its  early  settlers.  He  en- 
tered a)>out  two  hundred  acres  of  land  from  the 
Govenunent,  and  from  time  to  time  made  addi- 
tional purchases,  until  he  l>ecame  quite  an  exten- 
sive land-owner.  He  was  recognized  xs  one  of 
the  prominent  farmers  of  the  cximnninity.  He 
held  memljership  with  the  Kvangelical  Lutheran 
Church,  and  in  ix)litics  was  a  supiMirter  of  the 
Democratic  party.  He  die<l  in  the  fiftieth  year  of 
his  age,  and  his  wife  passed  away   at   the  age  of 


fifty-four.     They  were  tin-  p.irtiitsof  fi\  t-childrcn, 
four  sons  and  a  daughtei 

The  youngest  of  this  fainih  is  iIk-  .Si|iiiie.  He 
liegan  his  education  in  a  private  scIuk)1.  and  at 
tile  age  of  fourteen  started  out  in  life  for  him- 
self, working  by  the  month  as  a  farm  hand.  He 
has  siiKx-  l)een  de]H.-ndent  u|>on  his  own  reviurces. 
and  therefore  his  success  is  due  entirely  to  his 
f>wn  efforts.  He  worke<l  by  the  month  as  a  farm 
hand  until  alniut  sixteen  years  of  age,  after  which 
he  was  variously  employed  at  different  lines  of 
work  until  his  marriage.  In  April,  iS'is,  he 
we<ldetl  \'ina  Hlacke,  who  was  born.ni  DuPage 
County,  and  is  of  German  descent,  her  parents 
l>eing  pioneers  of  this  community.  Two  years 
after  his  marriage  he  ojK-ned  a  general  store  in 
Addison  (the  second  store  in  the  village)  and  for 
eighteen  years  carried  on  business  along  that  line. 
After  a  time  he  sold  a  half-interest  to  his  brother, 
who  purchased  the  reniainder  of  the  stock  when 
Squire  Stuenkel  left  the  business  altogether.  In 
the  spring  of  1872  the  latter  commenced  the  man- 
ufacture of  butter  and  cheese,  and  successfully 
continuetl  that  business  for  sixteen  years.  He  is 
a  man  of  enterprise  and  strong  determination,  and 
carries  on  to  successful  completion  whatever  he 
undertakes. 

In  the  fall  of  1870,  our  subject  was  called  upon 
to  mourn  the  loss  of  his  wife,  who  died,  leaving 
three  children.  Julius,  Kllen  and  Fmma.  The 
father  was  afterwards  again  married,  his  second 
union  being  with  Mary  Rotennund,  a  native  of 
Addison  Township.  They  have  four  children, 
Adolph,  Helena,  Louisa  and  Alma. 

In  his  political  affiliations.  Mr.  Stuenkel  is  a 
Democrat,  and  has  Ix-en  honore<l  with  a  numl)er 
of  local  offices.  At  this  writing  he  is  .ser\'ing  as 
Ju.stice  of  the  Peace.  He  has  l>een  ctmnected 
with  the  .\ddis<in  Mutual  Insurance  Company, 
and  belongs  to  the  l\vangelical  Church,  in  which 
he  has  held  several  official  positions.  He  is  now 
living  a  retire<l  life,  after  years  of  faithful  lalK>r, 
during  which  he  ac<juiretl  a  cou»|K"tency  sufficient 
to  keep  him  throughout  his  remaining  days,  and 
suj)ply  him  with  all  the  comforts  and  many  of  the 
luxuries  of  life.  He  now  owns  a  goo*!  farm  of 
one  hundred  acres,  and  has  given  to  his  eldest 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAI,   RECORD. 


164 

son  a  one-hundred-acre  tract.  Mr.  Stuenkel  has 
known  no  other  home  than  DuPage  County. 
He  has  here  a  large  circle  of  acquaintances  and 
many  warm  friends,  whose  friend.ship  for  him 
dates  from  the  days  of  his  boyhood.  Few  men 
are  better  known  than  Squire  vStuenkel,  and  by 
all  he  is  held  in  the  highest  regard. 


=-^^'^m=^ 


EAPT.  LUCIUS  B.  CHURCH  was  born  in 
Wyoming  County,  N.  Y.,  in  1831,  and  was 
the  fifth  of  ten  children.  The  parents, 
Lucius  and  Betsy  (Patterson)  Church,  were  also 
natives  of  the  Empire  State.  The  father  operated 
a  sawmill  in  the  East.  On  coming  to  Illinois,  he 
settled  at  Crs'stal  Lake,  where  he  followed  farm- 
ing until  his  death,  at  the  age  of  forty-nine  years. 
His  wife  survived  him  some  years  and  died  in 
Cr>-,stal  Lake  in  1881.  They  were  both  members 
of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church.  In  fact,  the 
father  was  a  minister  of  that  denomination.  Of 
their  family  of  five  sons  and  five  daughters,  five 
are  yet  living:  John,  of  Crystal  Lake;  Burney,  of 
Algonquin;  George;  Mrs.  Jennie  Morton,  of  Elgin; 
and  Mrs.  Abbie  Balch,  also  of  Elgin. 

Capt.   Church   whose  name  heads  this  record 
remained  under  the  parental  roof  until  he  had  at- 
tained his  majority,   and  then  became  agent   for 
the  Parmelee  'Bus  Line  in  Chicago.     In  1857  he 
became   proprietor   of  the    Junction    House,    of 
Turner,   and  carried  on   a  hotel  until  after  the 
breaking  out  of  the  late  war.     In    1862  he  re- 
sponded to  the  country's  call  for  troops,  enlisting 
as  a  member  of  the  One  Hundred  and  Fifth   Illi- 
nois   Infantry.     He    was   mastered   in    as    Fir.st 
Lieutenant  of  Company  B,  and  after  serving  six 
months  with  his  regiment  was  detached  to  act  on 
the  staff  of  Gen.  'W.  T.  "Ward,  of  Kentucky.     A 
year  later  he  was  ordered  to  his  regiment,    but 
was  again   detailed  on  the  staff  of  Gen.   A.    E. 
Paine,  and  later  on  the  .staff  of  Gen.  Sol  Meredith, 
of  Indiana.     Five  months  later  he  joined  the  One 
Hundred  and  Fifth  Illinois,  and  at  that  time  was 
promoted  to  the  rank   of  Captain.     After  three 
years'  faithful  service  he  was  mustered  out  at  the 


close  of  the  war,  in  June,  1865.  Returning  home, 
Capt.  Church  was  traveling-agent  for  the  Lake 
Shore  &  Michigan  Southern  Railroad  for  five 
years,  and  was  then  appointed  one  of  the  Assist- 
ant Supervisors  of  Illinois  in  the  Internal  Revenue 
Department.  Six  months  later  he  was  relieved, 
and  was  appointed  Internal  Revenue  A.ssessor  for 
Montana,  where  he  served  until  1873,  when  the 
law  luider  which  he  was  appointed  was  abolished. 
He  then  returned  to  Turner,  and  as.sumed  his  old 
po.sition  with  the  Lake  Shore  &  Michigan  South- 
ern Railroad,  with  which  he  continued  three 
years,  when  he  was  made  general  western  agent 
of  the  Hoosac  Tunnel  Line,  with  headquarters  in 
Chicago.  There  he  remained  until  1879,  but 
owing  to  illness  he  was  forced  to  retire. 

During  all  these  years  after  the  clo.se  of  the  war 
until   incapacitated  by   ill  health,   Capt.    Church 
.sang  the  old  patriotic  songs  at  the  prominent  State 
and  many  of  the  National  gatherings  of  his  party. 
It  is  a  matter  of  history,  known  to  but  few,   that 
the  Captain  was  the  first  to  sing  the  .stirring  song, 
"  Marching  Through  Georgia,"    which   he  sang 
at  the  general  army  headquarters  in   Washington 
the  morning  after  it  was  composed.      He  also  sang 
at  the  memorable  Philadelphia  National  Conven- 
tion, where  Gen.  Grant  received  his  first  nomina- 
tion for  the  Presidency.      He  enjoyed  the  devoted 
friendship    and    confidence    of  Gens.    Sherman, 
Logan,     Oglesby,   Ward,     Paine,    Meredith    and 
many  other  noted  military  men.     Before  his  health 
failed  him,  he  repeatedly  gave  concerts  in  aid  of 
churches  and  societies,  and  for  other  benevolent 
pnrpo.ses.      He   was    the   first    President    of  the 
Board  of  Trustees  of  Turner  and  was  honored  with 
many   other  public  offices.      He  will  long  be  re- 
membered by  the  boys  in  blue  for  his  many  kindly 
acts  toward  the  sick  soldiers  in  the  army  and  for 
his  devotion  to  his  friends. 

On  the  23d  of  November,  1854,  the  Captain 
married  Miss  Clara  Haffey,  a  native  of  Steuben 
County,  N.  Y.,  and  a  daughter  of  John  and 
Keziah  (Sherwood)  Haffey,  who  were  born  in 
Seneca  County,  N.  Y.  In  the  home  he  showed 
the  same  faithful  and  loving  devotion  that  won 
him  the  unwavering  friendship  of  his  army  com- 
rades, and  he  delighted  in  the  enjoyment  of  his 


PORTRAIT    VV"   I  !'"'••  U'HICAI.    RECORD. 


own  iironic.  He  i>\mic<1  hi-,  own  ri.-iiK!i>  >,  .r.u:  .i 
nunilHrr  of  ^tttxl  honied  in  Turner.  He  wilnervsed 
almost  the  entire  development  of  this  place,  and 
was  ever  prominent  in  the  promotion  of  its  l>cst 
interests.  Soi^iallv.  he  was  ooiuRvtoi  with  the 
Masonic  frateniity  and  the  Ciran<l  Anny  of  the 
Republic.  He  dii-«i  March  J.;.  iSg;.  of  paralysis, 
after  an  illne^^s  of  >e\en  months,  at  the  aj;e  of  six- 
•  ty-oiie  years.  The  funeral  was  conductc<l  by  E. 
S.  Kelley  Post.  G.  A.  R.,  and  was  largely  at- 
teiide<l  by  old-time  nei^hbiirs  and  frientls  from 
Chicago.  Wheattin.  Elgin,  Crystal  I^ke  and 
other  towns  in  this  p;m  of  the  Slate,  and  amid 
the  deep  regret  of  many  he  was  laid  to  rest  in 
Oakwood  Cemetery.  Surely,  the  world  is  Ixrtter 
for  his  having  lived,  for  he  w.xs  ever  wann-hearted 
and  true,  and  his  life  alKiunded  iti  g<K>;l  deeds. 


\^r^ 


ffj 


[=- 


EH.\K1J.>  H.  t.C)C)l)RICH  is  now  the  oldest 
settler  living  in  DuFage  County,  and  re- 
sides on  section  29,  Lisle  Township.  He 
was  Iwm  July  31.  182,^,  iti  Benson,  Vt..  and  was 
the  fifth  in  order  of  birth  in  a  fann'ly  of  seven  chil- 
dren whose  parents  were  HarrA-  and  Thankfxd  S. 
(  Watson  1  Gotxlrich.  All  of  the  childreti  are  now 
deceased  with  the  exception  of  our  subject  and  his 
brother.  Timothy  W..  who  resides  in  Milwaukee, 
where  he  i^  'in    the  linseed-oil  business. 

The  father  ■  .inily  was  a  native  of  the  (Ireen 

Mountain  State,  and  there  followed  farming  until 
i8ji2.  when  he  came  to  the  West  and  locatetl  on 
Government  land  in  DuPage  Ct)unty,  where  he 
remained  until  his  death,  which  occurred  about 
ten  years  later,  in  May.  1.S41,  at  the  age  of  forty 
years.  He  was  of  .Sojtch  descent.  After  his 
death  his  widow  entered  the  land  from  the  Gov- 
eniment.  and  there  made  her  home  until  called  to 
the  home  iK'yond.  when  about  seventy  two  years 
of  age.  The  paternal  grandfather.  Simeon  Good- 
rich, was  a  Revolutionary  soldier,  and  on  Iwith 
sides  our  subject  is  tlestx-ndeil  from  prominent  New 
England  families. 

Charles  Go<Klrich  sj»ent  the  first   nine  years   of 
his  life  in  the  Slate  of  his  nativitv .  and   then    ac 


I  'inp.inieil  lii>  parents  on  tiuir  ucslw.ini  i.iu:^;ra 
tion.  At  length  ihev  reache<l  Chicago,  which 
was  then  a  hamlet,  comjioseilof  Ft.  l)earlK>rn  and 
a  few  U)g  cabins.  It  ctmtainetl  not  a  single  franje 
resiiiemx-  and  gave  no  evidence  of  l)ecoming  the 
wonderful  World's  Fair  City  of  to-day.  The  jour- 
ne\  from  CluL-ago  to  DnPage  County  w;is  made 
with  an  ox  team."  They  came  to  an  aImo«l  un- 
broken wilderness,  in  which  there  were  no  roads, 
no  bridges  across  the  streanis.  and  no  settlements 
for  many  miles  around.  In  fact,  as  iK-fore  slated, 
Mr.  Goodrich  has  longer  Ijeen  a  resident  of  Du- 
Page Count*-  than  any  other  citizen  now  within 
its  Ixjrders.  He  remainetl  ujKin  the  home  farm 
until  sixteen  years  of  age,  with  the  exception  of 
two  years  spent  in  the  public  s«.-hools  of  Chicago. 
In  order  to  further  advance  in  k!K)wledge.  he  then 
entered  Castleton  Seminary,  in  \'emumt,  where 
he  spent  one  year  when  occnrretl  his  father's  <ieath. 
This  event  recalled  him  home,  where  he  helpetl  to 
settle  up  the  estate,  and  the  following  year  entered 
Burr  Seminary,  in  Manchester,  Vt..  where  he  was 
for  three  years  a  student.  The  succeeding  two 
years  were  pas.sed  in  Middlebur>'  ( Vt. )  College. 
Retuniing  home,  he  for  a  time  devoted  his  en- 
ergies to  teaching  schiwl.  He  sj)ent  one  year 
in  that  way  in  Xaperville,  and  was  for  one  term 
a  teacher  at  Barlier's  Corners,  in  Will  County. 
He  then  retunie<l  to  the  home  farm  and  has  since 
been  engagetl  in  its  cultivation  and  further  im- 
provement. 

On  the  4th  of  October,  1S51,  Mr.  Goodrich  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  P.  Jane  Turner,  a  na- 
tive of  New  Vork.  who  at  that  time  was  employed 
as  a  teacher  in  this  txtutity.  They  liecame  the 
parents  of  six  children,  two  of  whom  died  in  in- 
fancy. Howard,  the  eldest,  is  a  lawyer  of  Naper- 
ville.  111.:  his  twin  sister,  Itla  T..  lives  on 
the  home  farm:  Jennie  is  a  pnmiinent  teacher  of 
this  county:  and  Irving  carries  on  the  farm,  which 
has  Ixfen  in  the  i>os.session  <»f  the  family  since  1834. 
It  now  comprises  two  hundred  and  twelve  acres 
of  rich  land  and  is  jileasantly  l<K-ale<l  three  miles 
southeast  of  Naperville.  Here  the  father  and 
son  carT>'  on  general  farming  and  a  dair>  busi- 
ness. k<  '  MU  twenty-five  to  fifty  cows. 

Mr.  t  .  who  has  taken  an  active  interest 


8 


1 68 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


in  local  politics,  aided  in  the  organization  of  the 
Republican  party  in  this  locality,  and  was  one  of 
its  leaders  in  earlier  years.  He  has  been  honored 
with  a  number  of  offices  of  public  trust,  and  served 
as  Supervisor  of  his  township  for  one  term,  was 
Commissioner  of  Highways  for  a  number  of  years, 
Assessor  three  years,  and  for  twenty-four  years 
served  as  School  Director.  In  the  discharge  of 
his  official  duties,  he  has  ever  been  prompt  and 
faithful,  true  to  the  trust  reposed  in  him.  He  and 
his  family  are  members  of  the  Congregational 
Church,  in  which  for  many  years  he  has  served  as 
Deacon.  He  may  well  feel  proud  of  his  long  res- 
idence in  the  county  and  of  the  prominent  part 
which  he  has  taken  in  the  work  of  public  improve- 
ment. When  he  located  here  there  was  only  one 
hou.se  between  his  /lome  and  Chicago,  Years 
have  passed  since  then,  and  in  the  onward  march 
of  civilization  DuPage  County  has  taken  its  place 
in  the  front  rank  in  this  great  commonwealth.  A 
debt  of  gratitude  is  due  to  the  pioneers,  for  they 
were  its  founders  and  builders. 


"S) 


^^^ 


tS- 


1=^ 


pCJlLLIAM  T.  REED,  the  senior  member  of 
\  A  /  ''^^  '^'^"^  '^^  Reed  &  Campbell,  who  are  en- 
Y  V  gaged  in  general  merchandising  in  the  vil- 
lage of  Turner,  is  a  native  of  this  county,  having 
been  born  in  Wayne,  on  the  23d  of  March,  1843. 
He  is  a  son  of  George  W.  Reed,  a  native  of  the 
Green  Mountain  State,  who  was  one  of  the  first 
settlers  in  this  part  of  the  State.  He  located  in 
DuPage  County  as  early  as  1837,  took  up  a  claim, 
and  afterward  bought  more  land.  He  continued 
to  make  his  home  in  the  county  until  his  death, 
which  occurred  in  February,  1888,  at  the  age  of 
eight3'-two  years.  His  father  was  likewise  born 
in  Vermont,  and  was  of  English  descent.  His 
life  work  was  that  of  agriculture,  and  he  reared 
on  his  farm  a  family  of  twelve  children  to  lives 
of  sturdy  usefulness.  He  lived  to  be  very  old, 
and  died  respected  and  beloved  by  all  who  knew 
him.  The  maiden  name  of  our  subject's  mother 
was  Julia  A.  EUenwood.     Her  father  was,   like 


her,  a  native  of  Vermont,  and  his  death  occurred 
when  he  was  in  the  prime  of  life. 

A  family  of  seven  children  was  born  to  George 
W.  and  Julia  A.  Reed.  Four  of  the  number  were 
sons  and  three  daughters.  In  order  of  birth  they 
were  as  follows:  Rodney  H.;  George  B. ;  William 
T. ;  Emily  Alice,  who  is  the  wife  of  Robert  Ben- 
jamin; Charles  F. ;  Julia  Ann,  who  is  now  Mrs. 
James  Campbell;  and  Ida  M.,  wife  of  William- 
Wagner. 

The  subject  of  this  .sketch,  William  T.  Reed, 
was  reared  at  his  birthplace  in  this  county  and  was 
given  good  common-school  advantages.  From 
boyhood  he  was  thoroughly  familiar  with  farm 
duties,  and  remained  at  home  with  his  parents,' 
giving  them  his  dutiful  assistance,  until  he  was 
thirtv  years  of  age.  He  enlisted  in  Company  K, 
One  Hundred  and  Forty-fir.st  Illinois  Infantry, 
and  ser\'ed  one  hundred  days.  He  then  returned 
to  the  old  home,  where  he  continued  to  reside  un- 
til 1876.  At  that  time  he  removed  to  Turner, 
embarking  in  general  merchandising  with  Charles 
P.  Stark.  This  partnership  existed  until  the 
death  of  Mr.  Stark,  which  occurred  in  1889.  Mr. 
Reed  has  continued  in  business  up  to  the  present 
time,  and  is  one  of  the  successful  merchants  of  the 
place.  He  aims  to  please  his  patrons  in  every 
particular  and  keeps  a  well-assorted  stock  of  goods. 
He  is  affable  and  courteous  in  his  treatment  of  all, 
and  thus  has  won  an  enviable  reputation  as  a  man 
of  square  dealing. 

On  Christmas  Day  of  1879,  Mr.  Reed  was  united 
in  marriage  with  Miss  Maggie  Campbell,  a  daugh- 
ter of  David  and  Susan  (McMillan)  Campbell. 
Three  children  bless  their  union,  namely:  Irene, 
Beulah  and  Chauncy. 

Fraternally,  our  subject  holds  membership  with 
Amity  Lodge  No.  472,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  and  be- 
longs to  Doric  Chapter  No.  166,  R.  A.  M.,  of 
Turner.  He  is  also  connected  with  Kelley 
Post,  G.  A.  R.,  of  Wheaton.  At  the  present 
time  he  is  filling  his  second  full  term  as  Super- 
visor of  the  township,  in  addition  to  which  he 
served  an  unexpired  term  .some  time  previously. 
F'or  a  number  of  years  he  has  been  a  member  of 
the  Village  Board  of  Trustees,  and  for  eight  years 
was  Justice  of  the  Peace.     To  a  considerable  ex- 


PORTRAIT  AND  HIOCRArMICAI,   RIXORD. 


169 


tent  he  has  invested  hisnmnev  in  real-estate,  with 
the  result  that  he  owns  one  humlreil  and  sixty 
acres  of  fine  fanning  land  near  Mandan.  X.  Dak., 
and  owns  j;oo*l  eity  jirojK-rtv  in  Turner,  Ix-sides 
his  home  resiilemx-.  He  is  a  man  whoconnnands 
tlie  resjiecl  and  confidence  of  all  who  have  any 
dealinj;s  with  him.  whether  in  a  liusiiiess  or  social 
way,  and  is  numliered  amont;  the  suhstantial  cili 
zens  of  Turner. 


h^-^- 


[=_ 


IlI.l.IA.M  H.  KHLHRS  is  one  of  the  most 
prominent  citizens  of  Glen  Kllyn.  and  is 
the  promoter  of  its  jjreatest  enterprise,  the 
lUilers  Hotel.  nndoubtetUy  the  finest  commercial 
hotel  in  I)u  Page  Comity.  He  was  born  in  Wa.sh- 
ington  County,  Wis.,  near  Milwaukee.  Septemlier 
16.  1856,  was  reared  on  a  farm,  and  educated  in 
tlie  public  schools  near  his  home.  His  father, 
Henry  Hhlers,  was  boni  near  Bremen,  Germany, 
and  reached  the  advanced  age  of  eighty-nine 
years.  He  came  to  America  in  1851. and  lived  an 
industrious,  upright  life.  His  wife,  who  bore  the 
maiden  name  of  Marie  Ahlers,  was  also  Ixini  near 
Bremen,  Gennany,  and  is  now  living  in  Wi.scon- 
sin,  at  the  age  of  .seventy -eight.  iK-ing  still  well 
preserved  for  one  of  her  years.  She  was  the  sec- 
ond wife  of  Mr.  Ehlers.  and  unto  them  were  bom 
five  sons  and  two  daughters,  while  by  the  first 
union  were  lx>rn  two  sons,  namely:  Freti,  of  Wis- 
consin; and  Henry,  of  Iowa.  The  own  brothers 
and  sisters  of  our  subject  are  Adolph.  of  Wisconsin; 
Sina,  wife  of  Charles  Zeller.  of  the  Badger  State; 
August;  Margaret,  wife  of  Herman  X'olkmann,  of 
Wisconsin;  lyouis.  of  Chicago;  John;  and  Charles, 
of  Wisctju.sin. 

l-2arly  in  life,  the  subject  of  this  sketch  engaged 
in  the  manufacture  of  cigars,  and  met  with  excel- 
lent .success.  Fonning  a  partnership  with  Henry 
Schroeder,  he  continued  in  that  business  for  nine 
years,  purchasing  his  i>artner's  interest  after  two 
years.  In  iHjy,  he  went  to  Chicago,  where  he 
carried  on  a  saloon  and  hotel  on  Archer  Avenue 
for  some  time.  Again  he  pri)s]K.-re<l  in  his  business 
affair",    aiiiiiiiiilatiiii'  (|iiit<- a   projiertv        His  rt-si 


de..tx-  in  (ilen  I^lh  n  dates  Irom  iH.Sy.  since  which 
time  he  has  carrii-<l  on  a  saloon  and  the  fine  Fabl- 
ers Hotel.  He  was  formerly  proprietor  of  the 
Glen  Kllyn  F'xchange.  On  the  5th  of  Septemt)er, 
iSy;,  he  Inrgan  the  erection  of  his  magnificx-nt  ho- 
tel, which  is  three  stories  in  height,  with  a  l)ase- 
ment.  It  is  of  pri-s.se<l  brick  and  finished  ele- 
gantly throughout.  It  contains  twenty-two  rooms 
for  guests.  lK*sides  sample-rooms,  reading-rooms, 
private  and  public  parlors,  dining-rooms,  a  fine 
officx'  and  bar.  There  are  also  safety -deposit 
vaults,  a  bank,  a  barlxjr  sho]),  a  laundry,  and  the 
third  story  is  lH.-ing  fitted  uj>  I'or  an  elegant  danc- 
ing hall  and  society  room.  The  funiishings  are 
elegant  and  tasty,  being  such  as  are  found  in  a 
first-class  hotel,  and  there  are  all  the  nuKleni  im- 
provements in  the  way  of  lighting,  ventilation 
and  heating.  This  magnificent  structure  is  an 
enduring  monument  to  the  enteri>rise  and  pro- 
gre.s.sive  .spirit  of  the  owner,  and  is  an  addition  to 
Glen  Ellyn  of  which  the  citizens  may  well  be 
proud. 

In  1S74,  Mr.  IChlers  wxs  joined  in  wedU>ck  with 
Miss  Fredrikka  X'olkmann.  of  Milwaukee,  and 
unto  them  have  l>een  Ixini  three  chiltlren.  Family, 
Lydia  and  Willie,  who  are  still  under  the  parental 
roof.  Mr.  lihlers  isa  meniberof  the  Odd  Fellows' 
Societv.  and  is  a  prominent  and  influential  citizen 
of  the  communitx'  in  which  he  makes  his  home. 
He  has  been  remarkably  successfi.1l,  yet  his  pros- 
perity is  due  entirely  to  his  good  business  and 
executive  abilitv  .  lii>  enersjv   and  dilii^i-iue 


-S] 


€-f^l 


Gl  I.HI:RT  DANK  TRl'M,  is  a  well-known  citi- 
lJ  /en  of  DuPage  County,  now  serving  as  Post- 
/  I  master,  and  agent  for  the  American  lixpress 
Company  at  Wayne.  He  is  recognizetl  as  a  prom- 
inent business  man,  and  is  also  numl>ered  among 
the  early  settlers  of  the  county,  dating  his  resi- 
dence here  from  i8A.^.  A  native  of  the  old  Gran- 
ite State,  he  was  lx)ni  in  liillslx)ro  County,  June 
17,  18.^8.  He  received  fair  school  privileges,  and 
when  a  ><)uth  of  seventeen  left  home  to  make  his 
own  w;i\    in  tlu-  Ui.rld        Hilii  \  ini-    tb;tt  tin-  W«-st 


lyo 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


furnished  good  opportunities  for  ambitious  young 
men  who  wished  to  have  a  successful  business  ca- 
reer, he  went  to  Decatur,  111.,  in  1855,  and  there 
worked  for  the  American  Express  Company.  He 
also  attended  the  High  School  of  that  city  for 
several  terms,  being  engaged  in  teaching  during 
the  winter  months. 

In  Decatur,  in  1861,  Mr.  Trull  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Julia  Harrell,  who  was  born  and 
reared  in  Decatur.  In  1863,  he  came  with  his 
bride  to  DuPage  County,  locating  in  Turner, 
there  aiding  his  brother,  who  was  station  agent. 
On  the  15th  of  Januarj',  1864,  he  became  one  of 
the  first  settlers  of  Wayne  Station,  and  was  ap- 
pointed station  agent  for  the  Chicago  &  North- 
western Railroad  Company,  which  position  he 
held  for  eighteen  consecutive  years.  He  was  also 
made  agent  for  the  American  Express  Company, 
and  in  1864,  under  President  Lincoln,  was  ap- 
pointed Postmaster,  which  position  he  filled  until 
1884.  He  was  re-appointed  under  President  Har- 
rison and  now  holds  the  office. 

Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Trull  have  been  born  fi\-e 
children:  Jennie,  who  holds  a  responsible  posi- 
tion in  Chicago  with  the  Chicago  &  Northwestern 
Railroad  Company:  Albert  H..  a  well-educated 
young  man,  who  is  serving  as  agent  of  the  Chi- 
cago &  Northwestern  at  Williams  Bay,  Wis.;  Es- 
tella,  Clarence  and  Ziba,  who  are  attending  the 
home  school. 

Mr.  Trull  has  always  been  identified  with  the 
Republican  party,  and  is  a  stanch  advocate  of  its 
principles.  He  was  elected  and  sened  for  two 
terms  as  Clerk,  has  served  for  many  years  on  the 
School  Board,  and  is  now  Clerk  of  the  Board. 
He  is  ever  found  in  the  front  ranks  of  any  enter- 
prise 'calculated  to  prove  of  public  benefit,  and 
social,  educational  and  moral  interests  always  find 
in  him  a  friend.  He  belongs  to  the  Ancient  Or- 
der of  United  Workmen  of  Elgin,  and  to  the 
Modem  Woodmen  of  Wayne,  seK-ing  as  Clerk 
of  his  camp.  His  wife  is  a  member  of  the  Con- 
gregational Church.  Mr.  Trull  is  a  most  true 
and  faithful  man  to  everj-  duty  reposed  in  him, 
and  his  long  service  as  Postmaster,  express 
agent  and  station  agent,  indicates  his  faithful 
and  honorable    service.      Fair   and  upright  in  all 


his  dealings,  he  has  won  the  con'fidence  and  re- 
spect of  all  with  whom  business  or  social  relations 
have  brought  him  in  contact.  In  connection  with 
his  other  business  dealings,  he  has  been  engaged 
in  the  tile  business  for  a  number  of  years.  There 
is  no  enterprise  calculated  to  prove  of  public  ben- 
efit to  the  community  but  receives  his  support  and 
co-operation. 


I^+^I 


fl' 


1=^ 


DAM  S.  GLOS,  oneof  the  public-spirited  and 
progressive  citizens  of  Elmhur.st,  is  engaged 
in  the  hardware  business,  and  also  deals  in 
agricultural  implements.  He  has  carried  on  op- 
erations along  this  line  since  1S70,  and  has  built 
up  a  good  trade,  for  he  is  courteous  in  his  treat- 
ment of  his  patrons  and  earnestly  desires  to  plea.se 
them.  The  liberal  patronage  which  he  receives 
is  therefore  well  merited. 

Mr.  Glos  is  a  native  of  this  county.  He  was 
born  in  the  town  in  which  he  now  makes  his 
home,  on  the  8th  of  October,  1848,  and  is  a  son  of 
Adam  and  Catherine  (Soffellj  Glos,  who  were  na- 
tives of  Germany,  and  are  mentioned  in  connec- 
tion with  the  sketch  of  Henry  L.  Glos  on  another 
page  of  this  work.  Adam  S.  spent  the  days  of 
his  boyhood  and  youth  in  the  usual  manner  of 
farmer  lads,  and  began  his  education  in  the  public 
schools  of  this  county.  In  order  to  fit  himself  for 
the  practical  and  responsible  duties  of  hfe,  he  af- 
terwards attended  Bryant  &  Stratton's  Business 
College  of  Chicago.  He  remained  at  home  until 
twenty-eight  years  of  age,  and  for  several  years 
engaged  in  teaching  school  in  Cook  County.  Sub- 
.sequently,  he  taught  school  for  two  terms  in  Elm- 
hurst,  after  which  he  turned  his  attention  to  com- 
mercial pursuits,  and  opened  a  store  for  the  sale 
of  hardware  and  agricultural  implements. 

In  1877  ^^'^s  celebrated  the  marriage  of  Mr. 
Glos  and  Miss  Emily  Fi.scher,  daughter  of  August 
and  Eliza  '  (Hackerath)  Fischer.  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Glos  hold  membership  with  the  German  E^■an- 
gelical  Church,  and  contribute  liberally  to  its  sup- 
port. He  exercises  his  right  of  franchise  in  sup- 
port  of  the  Republican  party,  and  has  been  hon- 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOORAPHICAI.  RECORD. 


i:i 


oretl  with  souk-  lut-al  offices.  For  sovc-ral  tvnns 
he  has  sen-ed  as  Town  Clerk,  and  for  two  years 
was  Asses-sor. 

Mr.  Glos  owns  LxinsideraMe  fanning;  land  in 
Cook  and  DnPajje  Counties,  and  also  a  j;o(xl 
home  in  Hlnilinrst.  He  isa  man  offjiKxl  business 
ability,  enterjjrising  and  i>rojjressive,  and  by  his 
well-direi"te<l  efli>rts  has  achieved  his  succe.ss.  In 
manner  he  is  (genial  and  wann-hearted,  and  it  is 
always  a  pleasure  to  meet  him.  He  has  the  happy 
faculty  of  adai)ting  himself  to  circumstances,  and 
wherever  he  goes  wins  friends.  He  is  recognized 
as  one  of  the  substantial  and  public-spirited  citi- 
zens of  Ehuhnrst. 


-=l 


^-i^l 


[=_ 


|~REDERICK.  POLLWORTII,  who  follows 
IS  fanning  on  section  4,  Addison  Township,  has 
I  spent  nearly  his  entire  life  in  DuP.ige  Coun- 
ty, dating  his  arrival  here  from  1845.  He  was 
bon>  in  Hanover,  Gennany,  onjanuan,-  15,  1840, 
and  is  the  sixth  in  order  of  birth  in  a  family  of 
nine  children  who.se  parents  were  Fred  and  Dor- 
othy (Heine)  Pollworth.  They  were  also  natives 
of  Hanover.  All  of  their  children  died  in  that 
country  save  Henry,  who  die<l  in  Cook  County, 
and  our  subject  and  two  sisters.  In  1845,  the 
parents  cro.s,sed  the  Atlantic  to  America  and  went 
direct  to  Co<jk  County,  locating  in  lilk  Grove 
Township.  In  1861  they  removed  to  DuPage 
County.  Here  the  father  died  at  the  ripe  old  age 
of  eighty  years,  while  the  mother  passed  away  in 
her  .sixty-fifth  year. 

Our  subject  was  a  lad  of  oidy  five  muiiiiici^  at 
the  time  of  the  emigration.  In  the  German  and 
Engli.sh  schools  of  this  county  he  acijuired  his 
education,  and  that  knowledge,  sup]>lementetl  by 
reading  and  exinrrience  in  later  years,  has  made 
him  a  well-informed  man.  He  early  Ixrcame  fa- 
miliar with  all  the  duties  of  fann  life,  and  to  his 
father  he  gave  the  Ix-iiefit  of  his  services  initil  his 
marriage. 

In  Chicago,  in  1H70,  Mr.  Pollworth  \\;is  joined 
in  marriage  with  Miss  Regina  Sekamp,  a  native 
of  that  city.     Our  subject  then  located  in  Chicago, 


and  embarked  in  the  gri»i-er\'  business,  along 
I  which  line  he  carrieil  on  oj)eralions  for  about  fne 
years.  On  the  expiration  of  that  iH;ri<Kl  he  sold 
I  out  and  removeil  to  the  farm  on  which  he  now  re- 
sides. It  ct)mj)ri.ses  two  hun<lre<l  and  forty-three 
acres  of  rich  and  valuable  laiul, which  he  has  placetl 
under  a  high  state  of  cultivation,  making  the 
lieKls  yield  to  him  a  golden  tribute  in  return  for 
the  care  and  lal)or  he  l>estows  ujkju  them.  In 
connection  with  general  farming  he  also  carries  on 
stock-raising,  and  keeps  on  hand  fine  grades  of 
horses  and  cattle. 

The  home  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Pollworth  has  been 
blessed  with  four  children,  a  .son  antl  three  daugh- 
ters, Fred,  Amanda,  Carrie  and  IClla.  The  fam- 
ily circle  yet  remains  unbroken  and  all  are  .still 
under  the  parental  roof.  The  household  is  noted 
for  its  hospitality  and  gootl  cheer,  and  the  friends 
of  the  family  throughout  the  community  are  many. 
Mr.  Pollworth  is  a  Republican  in  his  jwlitical 
views.  He  holds  mendx-rship  with  the  Lntheran 
Church,  and  is  a  public-.spiritetl  and  progre.s,sive 
citizen,  who  is  ever  found  in  the  front  ranks  of 
those  enterprises  which  tend  to  promote  the  gen- 
eral welfare  and  advance  the  county's  best  inter- 
ests. 


-=] 


^-+^ 


[=^ 


ElIARLHS  1).  CLARK  is  a  promi.sing  young 
attorney  of  Turner,  111.,  and  is  engaged  in 
the  practice  of  his  profession  in  Chicago. 
He  has  made  his  home  in  this  place  since  his 
early  childhood,  and  owns  a  good  residence  prop- 
erty and  other  real  estate  in  the  village.  His 
birth  ocvurred  in  Chicago  on  the  19th  of  Xo- 
vendier,  1864, his  parents  Ix-ing  Charles  M.  and  Ar- 
villa  (Currier)  Clark,  and  our  subject  istheiroidy 
child.  The  father  is  a  native  of  Ottawa,  Canada, 
while  the  mother's  birth  CKxnirre<l  in  New  Hanip- 
.shire.  She  was  calle<l  from  this  life  alnjut  1865, 
and  some  three  years  later  the  father  married 
again,  the  lad\'  of  his  second  choice  l>eing  Miss 
Amanda  E.  Williams,  who  was  his  faithful  and 
devoted  wife  until  her  death,  which  t(M)k  i)lace  in 
1891. 
The  father  of  our  subject  early  in  life  followed 


172 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


the  profession  of  school  teaching  with  marked  suc- 
cess. Since  1870  he  has  been  engaged  in  the 
coal  business  in  Turner,  but  in  1890  he  received 
a  paralytic  stroke,  which  necessitated  retirement 
from  his  theretofore  active  career.  He  came  to 
the  Prairie  State  in  an  early  day,  about  1857,  and 
settled  in  DuPage  Count}'.  Here  he  has  made 
his  home  continuously  up  to  the  pre.sent  time. 
His  residence  in  Turner  dates  from  almost  the 
first  year  of  his  arrival  in  the  county,  and  he  has 
long  been  considered  one  of  its  representative 
and  progressive  citizens,  alwa>'s  interested  in 
everything  tending  to  its  advancement  and  im- 
provement, and  he  has  ever  taken  his  share  in  the 
promotion  of  its  welfare.  Religiously,  he  is  a 
member  of  the  Methodist  Epi.scopal  Church,  to 
which  his  second  wife  also  belonged.  His  father 
was  a  native  of  Ireland,  and  died  while  still  in 
early  manhood.  Our  subject's  maternal  grand- 
parents, William  R.  and  Roxanna  (Marsh)  Cur- 
rier, came  of  hardy  New  England  stock,  and 
William  R.  was  a  valiant  .soldier  in  the  late  Civil 
War.  His  death  occurred  when  he  was  in  the 
prime  of  life,  in  St.  Louis.  The  mother  of  our 
subject  was  a  member  of  the  Congregational 
Church,  and  a  lady  of  many  sweet  and  noble  qual- 
ities. 

The  boyhood  of  Charles  D.  Clark  was  passed  in 
Turner,  and  here  he  acquired  his  primary  educa- 
tion. He  was  an  apt  student,  and  as  he  was  am- 
bitious to  achieve  something  worthy  of  note  in  the 
world,  after  graduating  from  the  public  .school  of 
Turner  he  entered  Wheaton  College,  of  Wheaton, 
111.,  and  graduated  in  the  Class  of  '86.  Hav- 
ing a  natural  inclination  for  the  legal  profession, 
he  determined  to  adopt  it  as  his  life  work,  and  be- 
came enrolled  as  a  student  in  the  Union  College 
of  Law  of  Chicago.  After  a  thorough  course  he 
graduated  in  1888,  and  was  at  once  admitted  to 
the  Bar.  He  commenced  his  practice  in  Chicago, 
which  has  since  been  his  field  of  operations.  He 
is  acknowledged  by  his  colleagues  to  be  a  young 
man  of  great  promise,  and  though  quite  young, 
both  in  years  and  experience  as  a  lawyer,  he  has 
acquired  an  honorable  reputation,  which  mau}- 
who  are  older  might  well  envy. 

On  the  31st  of  July,  1890,  Mr.  Clark  and  Miss 


Kate  L.  Roundy  were  united  in  marriage.  She 
is  a  daughter  of  Gordon  N.  and  Maria  L.  (Kim- 
ball) Roundy,  who  are  well  and  favorably  known 
citizens  of  this  place,  and  is  a  lady  of  unusual 
ability.  The  union  of  our  subject  and  his  wife 
has  been  blessed  with  a  bright  little  son,  whom 
they  call  Royal  G. 

In  his  political  affiliations,  Mr.  Clark  is  a  Re- 
publican and  loyally  supports  the  men  and  meas- 
ures of  that  party.  With  his  wife  he  holds  mem- 
bership with  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  of 
this  place,  of  which  he  is  at  the  present  time  one 
of  the  Trustees.  They  are  valued  workers,  both 
in  church  and  benevolent  enterprises,  and  their 
plea.sant  home  is  the  abode  of  good  cheer  and 
cordial  hospitality. 


HENRY  FRITZ,  who  is  proprietor  of  a  meat- 
market  in  Ehnhurst,  was  born  in  Wurtem- 
l)erg,  Germany,  on  the  3d  of  February, 
1861,  and  is  a  son  of  John  and  Eva  (Bauer)  Fritz, 
who  were  also  born  in  the  same  country.  They 
became  the  parents  of  seven  children,  five  sons 
and  two  daughters,  but  only  two  of  the  family 
are  now  living,  John  and  Henry,  the  former  of 
whom  still  resides  iu  the  Fatherland.  The  parents 
were  both  members  of  the  German  Lutheran 
Church.  The  father  died  in  1877,  and  the  moth- 
er, who  survived  him  seven  years,  passed  away 
in  1884.  The  paternal  grandfather  of  our  sub- 
ject, John  Fritz,  was  a  tailor  by  trade,  and  his 
death  occurred  when  past  the  allotted  age  of 
three-score  years  and  ten.  He  reared  a  large 
family.  The  maternal  grandfather  followed  the 
trade  of  weaving,  and  al.so  died  in  German}-,  at 
an  advanced  age. 

In  taking  up  the  history  of  our  subject,  we  pre- 
sent to  our  readers  tlie  sketch  of  a  man  well 
known  in  this  community,  and  the  record  of  his 
life  will  therefore  prove  of  interest  to  manj'.  He 
was  reared  in  Germany,  and  in  the  common 
schools  acquired  his  education.  Later,  he  learned 
the  butcher's  trade.  It  was  in  1883  that  he 
bade   adieu   to    his   old    home   and   friends    and 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RliCORD. 


'73 


cri*isctl  the  Atlantic  to  Aincrica.  lii-  i-aiiic  at 
oiictr  to  Dul'agf  County.  111.,  and  ItKatttl  in 
Elnihiirst.  where  he  has  since  made  his  home. 
He  at  »)nce  liegan  working  at  his  trade,  an«l  was 
in  the  employ  of  others  until  iSS.s,  when  he 
opened  a  shop  lor  hiin.self. 

On  the  »uth  of  OctoUr.  iSijo.  Mr.  Frit/  led  to 
the  marriage  altar  Miss  Katie  Heml>ers,  dau^jhter 
of  John  and  Margaret  Heml)ers.  She  is  a  most 
estimable  lady  and  is  a  member  of  the  Catholic 
Church. 

In  his  social  relations,  Mr.  Fritz  is  connectetl 
with  the  Ancient  Order  of  I'nitetl  Workmen  of 
America,  and  in  politics  he  Ls  a  siipjjorter  of  Re- 
publican principles.  He  now  owns  a  good  home 
in  Klmhurst  l)eside  his  business.  From  a  small 
beginning,  he  has  in  a  few  years  built  up  a  large 
and  paying  business,  and  is  now  enjoying  a  fine 
trade.  Mr.  Fritz  nee»l  never  have  occasion  to  re- 
gret his  emigration  to  America,  for  he  has  found 
a  pleasant  home  and  many  friends,  and  has  met 
with  a  g<Kxl  degree  of  success  in  his  undertakings. 
CU>sc  application  and  attention  to  all  the  details 
of  his  business,  combined  with  enterprise  and  in- 
dustry, have  made  him  a  prosperous  man. 


i^-f^ 


(=_ 


MKonORK  SCHRAMER  is  an  enteqiris- 
•.iiitial  farmer,  who  owns  and 
it  six  hundred  acres  of  valu- 
able land  in  Wayne  Township,  and  we  wish  to 
add  his  name  to  the  pnjminent  citizens  of  I)u- 
Page  County,  where  he  has  made  his  home  since 
1857.  He  was  born  in  Prussia,  Gennany,  on 
the  5th  of  April,  1839,  and  is  a  .son  of  John  and 
Mar>-  (Stile)  Schramer.  who  were  also  natives  of 
Prussia.  In  1857,  they  bade  adieu  to  their  old 
home,  and  at  Antweq>  Ixxirded  a  sailing-vessel 
bound  for  New  York  City.  In  May  of  that  year 
the>'  came  to  the  West,  reaching  Wheaton.  I)u- 
I'age  County,  o!»  the  27th  of  May.  Two  sons  of 
the  famiU  had  locatetl  here  two  years  prexious. 
Mr.  Schramer  purchased  two  hundred  acres  of 
land  in  WiiifieM  Township,  and  with  the  help  of 
his  Min  deareil  and  <i]>ened  up  a  farm,  on   which 


he  lived  until  his  death,  wlndi  ikhmhu  m  i»6o. 
His  wife  passe«l  away  in  1870.  Of  their  faniily 
of  seven  sons  and  three  daughters,  all  grew  to 
mature  years,  liecame  heads  of  families,  and  all 
are  still  living,  with  the  exception  ol  one  brother. 

Our  subject  s|>ent  the  first  sixteen  years  of  his 
life  in  Prussia,  and  there  aajuiri-*!  a  go«>d  e<luca- 
tion.  but  in  ICnglish  he  is  entirely  self-educated. 
He  remained  with  his  father  until  he  had  at- 
tained his  majority,  when,  in  cfmnection  with  his 
brother-in-law,  John  Spoden.  he  purcha.sed  a 
tract  of  land  of  one  hundred  and  twenty  acres, 
upon  which  not  a  furrow  had  Itetn  turned  or  an 
improvement  made.  They  began  the  develop- 
ment of  their  land,  divide<i  it  into  fields,  which 
they  plowed  and  ]>lanted,  and  s«K>n  had  a  highly 
cultivate*!  tract  The  property  was  afterward  di- 
vided, Mr.  Schramer  receiving  sixty  acres,  to 
which  he  has  added  from  time  to  time  until  the 
home  farm  now  comprises  thrtx-  hundreil  and 
seventy  acres,  under  a  high  state  of  cultivation 
and  well  improved.  His  home  is  a  large  and 
substantial  residence-,  and  there  are  goo<l  banis,  a 
granar>-  and  wagon-house.  He  also  owns  an- 
other farm  of  two  hundred  and  twenty  acres, 
about  a  mile  from  the  home  place. 

On  the  16th  of  October,  1863.  Mr.  Schramer 
was  joined  in  wedli>ck  with  Mi.ss  Mary  Eeais.  a 
native  of  Germany,  who  t^me  to  this  country 
when  only  seven  years  of  age.  Her  lather,  John 
Leais,  Inrcame  one  of  the  earliest  settlers  of  this 
county.  I'nto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  .Schramer  have  t»een 
born  six  children,  Mary  is  the  wife  of  John 
Heinz,  a  fanner  who  resides  in  Wayne  Town- 
ship; Peter  aids  in  carrying  on  the  home  farm; 
John  also  follows  farming;  Nicholas,  a  man  of 
gcMxl  education  and  business  habits,  holds  a 
resjMJUsible  j>osition  in  Chicago;  I.i/zie  and  Susan 
are  at  home. 

Mr.  Schramer  cast  Ins  first  Presidential  vole 
for  Abraham  Eini'oln,  but  sini°e  that  time  has 
l>een  ideiitifietl  with  the  DenuKratic  party.  The 
cause  of  education  finds  in  him  a  warm  friend. 
He  is  a  stanch  supjKtrter  of  the  public  schcMjLs, 
and  has  servetl  for  a  number  of  years  as  School 
Diriftor.  He  and  his  family  are  meiiilK.-rs  of  St. 
Jithn's   Catholic    Church.      .Mr.    S«.hramer  com- 


174 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


mencedlife  for  himself  a  poor  boy.  emptj-handed, 
but  through  his  own  enterprise  and  industrv-  has 
accumulated  two  large  and  valuable  farms,  and 
to-day  is  recognized  as  one  of  the  substantial  citi- 
zens of  the  community-.  He  has  been  a  resident 
of  DuPage  Countj-  for  thirt\--six  long  years,  has 
■watched  its  growth  and  development,  and  has 
helped  to  make  it  what  it  is  to-day.  He  is 
widely  known  as  a  man  of  integrit\-  and  upright 
character,  and  he  and  his  estimable  wife  fully  de- 
ser\-e  the  esteem  in  which  they  are  held. 


=1^--^: 


P  GJlLLIAM  R.  JORDAN  was  bom  in  Steuben 

\  A  /  Count\-,  Pa.,  on  the  4th  of  November, 
Y  V  1S19,  and  was  a  son  of  Oliver  and  La-vina 
Jordan.  Our  subject  spent  his  bo\-hood  days 
upon  his  father's  farm,  and  the  common  schools 
afforded  him  his  educational  pri\-ileges.  He  re- 
mained in  Pennsj-lvania  until  1834,  when  he  emi- 
grated westward,  making  the  trip  by  team,  and 
on  reaching  DuPage  County,  111.,  settled  in  Win- 
field  Township,  where  his  father  took  up  a  tract 
of  Government  land,  partly  timber  and  partly 
prairie.  A  log  hou.se  was  built,  in  which  thefam- 
il5-  lived  for  a  number  of  years.  They  had  to  haul 
all  their  grain  to  Chicago,  which  was  their  nearest 
trading-post. 

On  the  I2th  of  July.  1843,  ^^r.  Jordan  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Mar\-  Gar\-,  who 
was  bom  November  14,  1826.  She  was  the  eldest 
daughter  of  Charles  Gar\-,  whose  biography  ap- 
pears on  another  page  of  this  work.  Their  fam- 
ily numbered  three  children:  George  \V..  Sarah, 
and  Melinda,  wife  of  George  Bumson,  a  farmer 
of  Wiofield  Township. 

Mr.  Jordan  was  a  public-spirited  and  progress- 
ive citizen,  who  took  a  commendable  interest  in 
ever>"thing  pertaining  to  the  development  and 
material  advancement  of  the  county.  In  earl\- 
life  he  was  a  Whig,  but  after  the  formation  of  the 
Republican  party  supported  its  principles.  He 
and  his  wife  were  memVjers  of  the  Methodist  Epis- 
copal Church  and  contributed  liberaUj-  to  its  sup- 
port.    His  death  occurred  at  his  home  in  Win- 


field,  March  30.  1S66,  and  his  remains  were  in- 
terred in  Gar\-  Mills  Cemeten,-.  His  wife,  who 
was  a  most  estimable  woman,  died  Januar\-  30, 
1882,  and  was  laid  to  rest  by  his  side. 

Their  son,  George  W.  Jordan,  was  bom  in  this 
count},"  on  the  9th  of  November,  1846,  and  at- 
tended the  district  schools.  Being  the  only  son, 
he  remained  with  his  parents  as  long  as  they 
lived.  He  now  owns  one  hundred  and  twenty 
acres  of  land  on  sections  14,  15  and  22,  Winfield 
Township,  where  he  carries  on  general  farming, 
and  is  also  engaged  in  the  dair^-  business.  He  is 
now  enjoying  a  thri\'ing  trade,  and  in  consequence 
secures  a  good  income. 

On  the  14th  of  September,  1876,  Mr.  Jordan 
was  united  in  marriage  wnth  ]\Iiss  Elizabeth  Bax- 
ter, who  was  bom  in  Winfield  Township.  No- 
vember 5,  1852,  and  is  a  daughter  of  John  and 
Sarah  (Sharp)  Baxter.  Four  children  have  been 
bom  of  their  union,  all  of  whom  are  living,  namely: 
EsteUa,  Mar\-,  Lavina  and  John.  The  family  is 
one  widely  and  favorably  known  in  the  commun- 
ity and  its  members  rank  high  in  the  social  cir- 
cles in  which  they  move.  In  politics,  Mr.  Jordan 
is  a  supporter  of  Republican  principles.  A  wide- 
awake and  enterprising  man,  he  is  recognized  as 
a  succes.sful  agriculturist,  and  ranks  among  the 
representative  and  substantial  fanners  of  the  com- 
munity. Those  who  know  him  esteem  him  highly 
for  his  sterling  worth,  and  he  has  a  host  of  ftiends 
throughout  the  communit\-. 


r"REDERICKJ.  T.  FISHER,  M.  D.,  a  prac- 
JM  ticing  phy.sician  of  Elmhurst,  was  born  in 
I  '  Addison  Township  in  1842.  He  pas.sed  his 
boyhood  with  his  father.  H.  D.  Fischer,  on  a  farm. 
At  the  outbreak  of  the  Rebellion,  he  was  the  first 
in  his  township  to  respond  to  his  country's  call. 
He  served  in  the  National  army  in  defense  of  the 
Union  until  the  Rebellion  was  on  the  wane. 
After  coming  home,  he  took  a  course  at  Oberlin, 
and  was  graduated  with  class  honors  in  1874.  In 
the  same  year  he  also  was  graduated  at  Wheaton 
College.     He  subsequently  studied   medicine   at 


J.    H.    ROEHLER. 
iPhoto'dby  Mills.) 


PORTRAIT  AND  HIOCRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


Leipsicand  Heidelberg,  Gennany.  andintiu  ^  <■■.  • 
Medical  College,  of  Cincinnati.  In  tlic  last-nanictl 
cit>-  he  entered  upon  his  professional  calling  and 
built  up  a  nice  practice.  The  deatli  of  his  wife's 
father  necessitated  hi>  removal  to  Khnhurst,  where 
he  has  pursued  with  much  satisfaction  the  prac- 
tice of  medicine  ever  since. 

In  1.S74  the  Doctor  married  Miss  Martha  Struck- 
mann.  daughter  of  D.  Struckmann.  The  family 
is  blesse<l  with  three  sons:  Walter  D..  Alfre<l  H, 
and  Herliert  C. 


^-^! 


(1(1HN  HKNRY  ROKHLKR.  who  i>  mun 
I  Uretl  among  the  early  settlers  of  DuPage 
O  County,  of  1856,  now  resides  in  Blooming- 
dale.  He  claims  Germany  as  the  land  of  his 
birth,  which  occurred  in  Hesse  Cassel,  Novem- 
ber 21,  1835.  The  days  of  his  boyhood  and  youth 
were  there-  passed,  and  the  common  schools  af- 
forded him  his  e<hicational  privileges.  He  after- 
ward began  learning  the  shoemaker's  trade,  to 
which  he  served  a  four  years  apprenticeship. 
In  i.Ss6  he  emigratetl  to  the  New  World.  Hear- 
ing of  the  advantages  and  opportunities  aflfordetl 
young  men  in  this  country,  he  resolved  to  tr>' 
his  fortune  in  America,  and  in  1856  boarded  a 
vessel  at  Hamburg,  going  bj-  way  of  Liver- 
pool to  New  York,  where  he  arrived  April  28. 
1856,  after  a  voyage  of  forty-nine  days.  He  came 
at  once  to  Illinois,  reaching  Chicago  on  the  4th 
of  May.  Procee<ling  U>  Blcjomingdale  he  here  be- 
gan working  at  the  slujemaker's  trade.  .\fterl>e- 
ing  employed  for  three  years  he  opened  a  shop  of 
his  own,  and  h.is  since  carried  on  the  business. 
Success  has  crowne<l  his  efforts  an<l  he  is  now  in 
comfortable  circumstances.  He  has  a  neat  and 
sut>stantial  residence  here,  and  a  g<x>d  income, 
which  enables  him  to  supply  the  household  with 
all  the  comforts  that  go  to  make  life  worth  the 
living. 

On  the  28th  of  May.  1862,  in  Bloomingdale. 
Mr.  Roehler  was  united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Re- 
becca Meyer,  a  native  of  Gennany.  whose  death 
occurred  October  28,  1871.     They  had  two  chil- 


Mi<.ii  (.ut  both  died  in  early  childhootl.  On  the 
ist  of  June,  1872,  Mr.  R(K-hler  we<lded  Miss 
Sophia  Guemmer,  a  native  of  Germany.  They 
have  two  children:  Henry  I).,  who  is  now  pursu- 
ing a  course  of  study  in  Wheaton  College;  and 
Kmma,  at  home. 

Mr.  Roehler  is  a  .self-made  man,  who  empty- 
handed  starteil  out  to  make  his  own  way  in  the 
world.  His  career  has  not  iK-en  without  obsta- 
cles and  difficulties,  but  he  has  overcome  these  by 
lalxjrious  effort  and  jK-rseverance.  atid  is  now  well 
off.  He  exercises  his  right  of  franchise  in  sup- 
port of  the  Democratic  party,  and  his  first  vote 
was  cast  for  Gen.  George  B.  McClellan  in  1864. 
He  has  served  as  a  delegate  to  various  conven- 
tions of  his  party,  and  is  now  ser\ing  as  a  mem- 
ber of  the  County  Ikmocralic  Central  Committee. 
In  1876  he  was  elected  Town-ship  Clerk,  and  again 
in  1884.  He  has  alsti  ser\e<l  as  Township  Treas- 
urer, and  in  1885  was  again  chosen  as  Clerk, 
having  served  in  that  office  and  as  Treasurer  con- 
tinuously since.  In  whatever  ix)sition  he  has 
been  called  upon  to  fill,  he  has  discharge<l  his 
duties  with  a  promptness  and  fidelity  that  have 
won  him  the  cummemlation  of  all. 


-S* 


^■^-l 


Ei:()RGE  REUSS  is  numl>ered  amt)ng  the 
early  settlers  of  Naperville,  and  is  a  promi- 
nent banker  of  this  place.  He  has  also  l)een 
connectetl  with  other  business  interests,  and  has 
ever  been  rec<^>gnized  as  a  leading  and  influential 
man.  He  was  Ixjrn  in  Bavaria,  Germany,  June 
24,  1831,  and  is  a  son  of  Austin  Reuss,  who  was 
also  a  native  of  the  same  locality,  and  there  spent 
his  entire  life,  as  did  the  mother  of  our  subject. 
This  worthy  couple  were  the  parents  of  five  chil- 
dren. 

George  Reuss,  who  Ls  the  eldest  of  the  family, 
was  reared  and  educate*!  in  the  Fatherland,  .si*nd- 
ing  his  l)oyhcx>d  in  his  parents'  home.  In  his 
youth  lie  leanietl  the  tailor's  trade,  which  he  fol- 
lowed in  Germany.  The  year  1S54  witnesseil 
his  arrival  in  America.  Believing  that  the  New 
World    funiLshe<l    l*tter   opjiortunitics  for  ambi- 


178 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


tious  and  enterprising  young  men  than  the  older 
countries  of  Europe,  at  the  age  of  twenty-three  he 
bade  adieu  to  home  and  friends,  and  in  a  sailing- 
vessel  crossed  the  Atlantic,  landing  in  New  York 
City  in  January,  1855.  He  made  his  first  loca- 
tion in  St.  Charles,  Kane  County,  111.,  and  on  the 
ist  of  May,  1856,  came  to  Naperville,  where  he 
began  business  as  a  merchant  tailor.  For  thirty- 
seven  years  he  has  now  carried  on  business  along 
this  line,  and  a  high  degree  of  success  has  at- 
tended his  well-directed  efforts. 

Mr.  Reuss  is  truly  a  self-made  man.  When  he 
was  married  he  had  but  $3  to  pay  the  minister. 
On  the  29th  of  June,  1856,  Miss  Man,-  Ann  Kraff 
became  his  wife.  She  was  bom  in  the  same  lo- 
cality as  our  subject,  and  in  childhood  they  at- 
tended the  same  school.  As  the  Aears  advanced 
their  friendship  deepened  into  love,  and  their 
marriage  was  celebrated,  as  before  stated.  They 
have  now  traveled  life's  journey  together  for 
thirty-seven  years,  and  Mr.  Reuss  has  found  in 
his  estimable  wife  a  faithful  companion  and  help- 
mate. Three  children  have  been  born  unto  them; 
Ella  E.,  wife  of  Val  Dieter,  who  is  now  cashier 
in  the  Bank  of  Naperville;  Anna,  wife  of  Charles 
Zahringer,  of  the  Chicago  Spice  Company;  and 
Joseph  A.,  who  is  serving  as  assistant  cashier  of 
the  bank. 

Mr.  Reuss  opened  the  Bank  of  Napen-ille  on 
the  ist  of  May,  1886.  It  is  recognized  as  one  of 
the  substantial  financial  institutions  of  the  county, 
and  does  a  conser\-ative  business,  receiving  a 
liberal  patronage  from  the  best  citizens  of  the 
community.  In  connection  with  his  banking  and 
tailoring  business,  Mr.  Reuss  owns  a  fine  and 
valuable  farm  of  one  hundred  and  seventy  acres 
in  DuPage  County,  and  owns  much  property  in 
Naperville.  In  his  political  affiliations,  on  ques- 
tions of  State  and  National  importance  Mr. 
Reuss  is  a  Democrat,  but  at  local  elections  he 
supports  the  man  whom  he  thinks  best  qualified 
for  the  office,  regardless  of  party  affiliations.  He 
has  been  honored  with  the  office  of  Mayor,  has 
also  served  in  the  Council,  and  the  prompt  and 
able  manner  in  which  he  discharges  his  public 
duties  has  won  him  high  commendation.  He  is 
a  man  of  good  business  ability,  who  carefully  at- 


tends to  all  details,  and  by  good  management  and 
perseverance  he  has  achieved  success.  The  wis- 
dom of  his  choice  in  selecting  America  as  the 
.scene  of  his  labors  is  shown  by  the  prosperity 
which  has  here  crowned  his  efforts. 


"=) 


^-i^l 


e 


APT.   M.   E.  JONES,  now  the  efficient  and 
genial  Postmaster  of  Wheaton,   is  not  only 
widely  and  favorably  known  to  the  people 
of  DuPage  County,  but  also  has  a  wide  acquaint- 
ance in  army  circles,  for  he  was  one  of  the  valiant 
defenders  of  the  Old  Flag  during  the  late  war,  and 
fired    the  first   .shot  at  the  battle  of  Gettysburg. 
His  life   record  is  as  follows;     He  was  born   in 
Poultney,  Rutland  County,  Vt.,  June  5,  1830,  and 
is  a  son  of  P^phraim  and  Sophia   (Page)  Jones. 
On  his  father's  side  he  is  descended  from  Gen. 
Stark's  family.     His  grandmother,  Eunice  Stark, 
was  an  own  .sister  of  Gen.  Stark,  whose  braven,-  is 
well  known, -and   whose  courage  was  manifested 
in  his  speech  to  the  "Green  Mountain  Boys"   be- 
fore the  battle  of  Bennington;   '  'Boys,  we  conquer 
to-day,  or  Mollie  Stark  is  a  widow."     The  Stark 
family  is  of  English  origin,  the  Joneses  of  Welsh, 
and  the  Pages  and  Crosses  were  of  Scotch  lineage. 
The  father  of  our  subject  was  a  wagon-maker 
by  trade.      He  .spent  his  entire  life  in  Vermont", 
where  he  was  killed  during  a  cyclone.    His  widow 
is  still  living  in    Pawlet,  Vt. ,  with  her  youngest 
son.  Nelson  M.,  the  only  brother  of  our  subject. 
Two  sisters  of  the  family  are  still  living;   Libbie, 
now  the  wife  of  Lynus   H.  Jennings,  a  wealthy 
citizen  of  Middletown,  Vt.;  and  Eola  S.,  wife  of 
Quincy    Pratt,    a    druggist    of  Pawlett,    Vt.      A 
brother  of  our  subject,  Frank  P.  Jones,  a  doctor, 
became  arni)^  surgeon  of  the  Fourteenth  Vermont 
Infantrs',  and  while   in  the  army  contracted  an 
illness  from   which   he   died   in    1864.      A  sister, 
Annis,  became  the  wife  of  Philetus    Farrar,   of 
Wells,  Vt.,   and  died  leaving  a   .son,  Marcellus, 
who   is   now   engaged    in    business   in   Chicago. 
Henrietta  became  the  wife  of  Mr.  Whitlock,   of 
Weyauwega,  Wis., and  died,  leaving  two  children, 
both  of  whom  have  since  passed  away. 


(Fhotu  <1  by  Mill*.! 


M.  H,  Jones. 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


179 


Capt.  Jones  reniaiiicii  in  the  Green  Mi)niitain 
Stale  until  seventeen  years  of  age,  being  reared  in 
Bennington  and  Rutland  Counties.  At  that  time 
he  starte<l  out  in  life  for  himself,  and  has  since 
made  his  own  way  in  the  world.  It  has  not  all 
been  smooth  sailing,  for  he  has  met  with  several 
severe  losses,  yet  he  is  now  comfortably  situated 
in  life.  His  first  venture  was  as  a  jewelry  j)eddler. 
With  a  horse  and  buggy  he  traveled  through  the 
country  selling  jewelr>'.  The  next  year  he  went 
to  Niagara  Countv ,  N.  V.,  and  thence  to  Medina 
County,  Ohio,  spending  eighteen  months  in  the 
two  places,  working  as  a  carpenter  and  joiner. 
He  arrived  in  Chicago  December  23,  1850,  and 
there  followed  his  trade  for  four  years,  after  which 
he  went  to  Weyauwega,  Wis.,  where  he  niarrie^l 
Miss  Sarah  Reece.  At  that  place  .Mr.  Jones 
worked  at  his  chosen  vocation,  and  also  built  a 
sa.sh  and  door  facton,-.  but  was  .so  unfortunate  as 
to  have  it  de.stroyed  by  fire,  and  in  a  few  hours 
his  hard-earned  savings,  amounting  to  $4,000, 
went  up  in  smoke.  While  in  W'i.scoiisin  a  .son 
was  Ixirn  unto  him,  but  the  child  only  lived 
thirteen  days,  and  the  mother  died  about  the 
same  time. 

In  i!S5S,  Capt.  Jones  removed  to  DuPage  Coun- 
ty, and  soon  liecame  one  of  the  leading  contract- 
ors and  builders  of  the  community,  working  a 
large  force.  He  located  in  Danby,  now  Pro.spect 
Park,  and  there  continued  his  labors  until  the  call 
came  for  volunteers.  He  was  among  the  first  to 
resjMjnd,  eidisting  Augu.st  5,  1S61,  in  Company 
E,  Eighth  Illinois  Cavalr>.  His  comrades  wished 
him  to  become  an  officer,  but  he  mode.stly  de- 
clineil  the  offer,  saying  that  military  science  and 
tactics  were  new  to  him;  but  after  he  had  been 
tried  in  the  service,  if  they  still  wished  to  place 
him  in  ajmmand,  he  would  then  consider  their 
courtesy.  He  helped  to  organize  Company  E, 
ser\-ed  the  full  time,  and  in  Dec-enil>er,  1.S63,  re- 
eidisted.  He  was  honorably  discharged  with  his 
regiment  in  Chicago,  in  1865.  True  to  his  deter- 
mination, he  entered  the  service  as  a  private,  but 
his  meritorious  conduct  won  him  promotion  from 
time  to  lime,  until  he  became  Captain.  He  it 
was  that  fired  the  first  shot  at  the  memorable 
battle  of  Gettysburg.      While  placing  his  men  on 


picket  about  7:30  o'clock  in  the  morning,  Capt. 
Jones  took  a  carbine  from  Sergt.  Levi  S.  Shaf- 
fer and  fired  at  the  advancing  enemy. 

The  Ivighth  Illinois  Cavalry  went  into  camp  at 
St.  Charles,  but  was  drilled  at  Washington,  I).  C. 
The  troops  were  mustered  in  September  18,  1861, 
and  on  the  13th  of  October  were  .sent  to  the  Capi- 
tol City,  and  on  the  17th  camjied  at  Meritlian 
Hill.  On  the  17th  of  DecemlK-r  they  went  into 
camp  near  Alexandria,  Va.,  and  March  10,  1862. 
joined  the  general  advance  on  .Manassas,  in  Gen. 
Sumner's  division.  The  liighth  Cavalry  re- 
mained at  Warrentown  until  May  12,  and  four 
times  drove  the  enemy  across  the  Rappahaiuiock. 
On  the  4th  of  May  they  went  to  Williani-sburg, 
and  were  assigned  to  the  Light  Brigade  under  Gen. 
Stoneman.  They  participated  in  the  battles  of 
Mechanicsville,  Gaines  Hill.  Dispatch  Station  and 
Malvern  Hill:  picketed  on  the  James  River  while 
the  army  lav  at  Harri.son's  Landing:  and  led  the 
advance  on  the  second  occupancy  of  Malvern 
Hill.  Landing  at  Alexandria  on  the  i.st  of  Sep- 
tember, they  crossed  into  Maryland,  and  at  the 
engagement  at  Poolsville  Church  captured  the 
colors  of  the  Twelfth  Virginia  Confederate  Cav- 
alry, and  participated  in  the  battles  of  Uarnesville, 
Sugar  Loaf  Mountain,  Middletown,  South  Moun- 
tain. Boonesboro,  Antietam  and  Martinsbnig,  and 
then  moved  in  advance  of  the  Army  of  the  Poto- 
mac, meeting  the  rebel  cavalry  in  battle  at 
Phihnonte,  I'niontown.l'pperv-ille,  Barber's  Cross 
Roads,  Little  Washington,  Amesville.  Falmouth 
and  P'redericksburg.  During  the  campaign  of 
1863,  our  subject  was  engaged  with  his  regiment 
at  Sulphur  Springs,  Warrenton,  Rapidan  Station, 
Northern  Neck,  Fairville,  Gettysburg,  Williams- 
burg. Boonesboro,  Falling  Water,  Chester  Gap, 
Sandy  Hook,  Culpeinrr,  Brandy  Station,  the  raid 
to  F'almouth.  Raccixin  Ford,  Liberty  Mills,  Ma- 
na.ssas.  Mitchell  Station  and  El\ 's  F'ord.  The 
regiment  was  mustered  out  at  Benton  Barracks, 
Mo.,  July  17,  1865,  and  ordered  to  Chicago,  where 
the  troojis  were  paid  off.  At  the  Briggs  House, 
in  that  citv,  the  Captain  paid  off  his  men.  The 
First  Lieutenant  waited  around,  and  finally  in- 
formed him  that  he  was  wanted  in  room  55. 
What  was  the  Captain's  suri»rise.  when,  after  he 


i8o 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


had  repaired  to  that  room,  he  was  presented  with- 
an  elegant  silver  set,  valued  at  $165.  It  is  need- 
less to  say  that  he  was  held  in  the  highest  esteem 
by  the  boj's  in  blue  who  served  under  him  and 
thus  manifested  their  love  and  respect.  Mr.  Jones 
was  commissioned  Second  Lieutenant  December 
5,  1862,  First  Lieutenant  July  4,  1864,  and  Cap- 
tain October  10,  1864.  All  three  commissions 
were  signed  by  Gov.  Richard  Yates. 

Captain  Jones  was  married  September  i,  1864, 
to  Miss  Naomi  E.  Mecham,  daughter  of  Mathew 
P.  and  Phoebe  (Ben.son)  Mecham.  Three  Me- 
cham brothers  came  from  England  and  .settled  in 
Massachusetts  in  Colonial  days.  The  great-grand- 
father serv^ed  in  the  Revolutionary-  War.  He  was 
also  a  lover  of  the  chase,  and  went  to  Vermont  on 
frequent  hunting  expeditions.  This  made  him 
acquainted  with  the  Green  Mountain  State,  and 
the  family  finally  removed  thither.  The  grand- 
father, Seth  Benson,  was  at  the  battle  of  Platts- 
burg,  in  the  War  of  18 12.  The  parents  of  Mrs. 
Jones  removed  from  Vermont  to  DuPage  County 
in  1854.  The  mother  died  in  1884,  at  the  age  of 
eighty-five,  and  the  father  died  in  Wheaton,  in 
1887,  at  the  age  of  ninety.  They  had  six  chil- 
dren: Rhoda  E.,  deceased,  wife  of  Arius  Had- 
lev,  of  Wheaton;  Angeline,  who  died  in  infancy; 
Matthew  F. ,  who  married  Angelette  King,  and  is 
a  farmer  of  Dodge  City,  Kan.;  Naomi  E.;  James 
S.;  and  David  L.,  who  died  in  infancv.  Mrs. 
Jones  was  only  twelve  years  of  age  when  her  par- 
ents came  to  Illinois.  After  two  years  spent  as  a 
.student  in  Wheaton  College,  she  engaged  in 
teaching,  and  followed  that  profession  until  her 
marriage.  She  did  what  the  rebels  could  not  do 
— capture  the  Captain. 

After  his  marriage,  Mr.  Jones  -worked  at  his 
trade  as  a  builder  and  house-mover,  locating  in 
Wheaton  immediately  after  the  close  of  the  war. 
In  1872  he  went  to  Colorado,  where  he  carried  on 
a  .stock-ranch  for  four  years,  when,  in  1876,  he 
returned  with  his  wife  to  Wheaton,  where  they 
have  since  resided.  They  have  a  pleasant  home 
on  Naper\-ille  Street,  which  is  the  abode  of  hos- 
pitality, and  in  the  community  they  have  man}- 
friends.  Capt.  Jones  has  been  called  upon  to 
ser\-e  in  various  official   positions.     He  served  as 


Township  Collector,  City  Councilman,  and  in 
1882  was  elected  County  Sheriff  for  a  term  of  four 
years.  In  1890,  he  was  appointed  Postmaster  by 
President  Harrison,  and  is  now  acceptably"  filling 
that  position.  The  Captain  is  prominent  in  Grand 
Army  circles,  and  is  a  charter  member  of  E.  S. 
Kelley  Po.st  No.  513,  G.  A.  R.,  of  which  he  was 
made  the  first  Commander.  He  is  also  a  Mason, 
belonging  to  the  Blue  Lodge  of  Wheaton,  and 
the  Chapter  of  Naperville.  He  holds  membership 
with  the  Knights  of  Pythias  and  Odd  Fellows' 
Society,  and  his  wife  is  a  member  of  the  Rebecca 
Order.  In  politics,  he  is  a  stalwart  Repub- 
lican, and  both  the  Captain  and  Mrs.  Jones  are 
members  of  the  Universali.st  Church  of  Wheaton. 
His  oflacial,  army  and  private  life  are  alike  above 
reproach.  He  is  true  to  every  public  duty,  faith- 
ful to  every  trust,  and  was  a  valiant  and  cour- 
ageous soldier  in  his  country's  hour  of  peril. 


"~  DGAR  BOYNTON,  a  retired  farmer  residing 
'd  in  Turner,  is  a  native  of  Vermont.  His 
^  father,  Peter  J.  Boynton,  was  born  in  the 
Empire  State,  and  served  as  a  soldier  in  the  War 
of  18 1 2.  By  occupation  he  w-as  a  fanner,  and  fol- 
lowed that  pursuit  throughout  his  entire  life.  He 
reared  a  family  of  six  children,  three  sons  and 
three  daughters.  His  death  occurred  in  Hines- 
burgh,  Vt.,  at  the  age  of  eighty-four  years. 

Edgar  Boynton  followed  in  the  footsteps  of  his 
father  and  chose  farming  as  his  vocation.  The 
work  with  which  he  became  familiar  in  his  youth 
he  continued  until  advancing  years  made  him  wish 
to  lay  aside  its  cares.  There  was  also  another 
motive  for  his  retirement  from  business  in  1889, 
and  his  removal  to  Turner,  for  he  wished  to  be  near 
his  sons  to  aid  them.  In  1854  he  left  the  Green 
Mountain  State  and  came  westward,  settling  in 
Elk  Grove,  Cook  County,  111. ,  where  he  lived  for 
fifteen  years,  all  the  time  busy  with  farming  du- 
ties. He  then  removed  to  Wayne  Township,  Du 
Page  County,  and  has  been  a  resident  of  this 
county-  continuously  since. 

Mr.  Bovnton  married  Miss  Genevieve    Bowe, 


I'oioTKMT  wn  luoc.KArmcA!.  Ri:cf)iir) 


ihi 


ami  mill)  tlK-iu  Ii.im-  Iri-h  i>.:ii  ,»"  ■-  'u^  w  wii.i-.u 
A.  ami  Kay  D.  The  foniur  lc-arnc<l  the  tinners 
trade  and  is  n«>\v  engaged  in  the  hanlware  busi- 
ness in  Turner.  Ray  isengage<l  in  the  hanlware 
lnisine>sin  Wayne.  The  father  ..f  Mrs.  lUnnton, 
John  Bowe.  was  a  native  of  Vennont.  and  came 
to  this  Stale  in  isy>.  He  locatttl  at  Klk  Grove, 
licouning  one  of  its  pioneer  settlers.  His  death 
occurred!  in  Palatine.  April  24.  1KH6.  at  theageof 
eighty  years. 

Mr.    B«iynton  is  a  stanch  advocate  «>f  Repuhli 
can  principles,   but    is  a  ixtlitician  in  no  sense  of 
the    word,   having    never    lH.-e««    an   office-.seeker. 
preferring  rather  to  K>ok  af\er  his  fanning  inter- 
ests and  live  a  quiet  life,  undisturlied  by  the  tur 
moil  of  the  p  >litical  arena.     The  result  of  his  la- 
lK>rs  hasUen  unite  satisfactory  .  and  he  has  retired 
from  hanl    work    with    an    aHii)le  c<inij>eteniy  to 
supply  the  v\  ants  of  his  .»ld  age.      His  life  has  l»cen 
uniistent.itionsand  unpretending,  and  is  well  wor 
thy  of  emulation,  for  it  hxs  lieen  iharacteri/.ed  by 
honesty  and  integrity. 

Mr.  IJov  nton  i>  one  of  the  few  men  whocan  trace 
their  genealogy-  Iwck  into  the  eleventh  century, 
and  he  takes  great  pride  in  keeping  a  complete 
record  of  his  aiKxrstors.  He  has  seen  nearly  all  of 
the  development  of  the  ctnuily.  and  is  one  of  its 
substantial  citizens.  Hesettletl  in  DuPage  Coun- 
ty when  it  ti>ok  a  great  deal  of  i)erseverance  and 
determination  to  remain  in  this  frontier  locality. 
and  he  is  now  a  living  monument  to  the  certainty  of 
reward  for  the  faithful  toiler  who  prudently  and 
persistently  labors  toward  the  goal  which  is  just 
before. 


.  \<  1.1  HI     ^  ^    1 11 


15=" 


ffln.XM  KKl.l.HR.  who  for  many  years  was 
T\  .iniectc<l  w itli  the  agriaiUural  interests  of 
[\  i>u  Page  County,  is  now  living  a  retired  life 
on  section  11.  Naperville  Township.  He  was 
boni  in  the  kingdom  of  Bavaria,  llcnnany,  on 
the  34th  of  February  ,  iS.V.  and  is  the  youngest 
in  a  lamily  of  four  sons  and  two  daughters  liorn 
unto  John  M.  and  Annie  K.  <  Ixx-sch )  Keller 
Tlic  parents  were  l)oth  natives  of  tlie  s;ime  liK-al 
ity.  where  the>  >ik-iiI  their  entire  lives. 


■  ^  i^...>  ,    --1  under  the 

parental  nnif.  remaining  at  lumie  until  twenty  one 
years  of  age.  when  he  Iwde  adieu  t<»  friends  und 
family,  and  saile<l  from  the  Fatherland  for  Amer 
ica.  It  was  in  the  year  1K52  that  he  took  up  his 
residence  in  DuPage  County,  where  he  liegan 
working  by  the  month.  He  was  (9  in  debt, 
which  sum,  of  o)urse.  hail  to  l>e  jiaid  off  liefore  he 
could  make  a  sUirt  for  himself.  After  working 
as  a  farm  hand  for  some  time,  he  Ijegan  work- 
ing for  Hiram  Fowler,  by  whom  he  was  employed 
for  eight  years  at  5'.V>  1"^''  year.  After  his  mar- 
riage he  rentetl  a  farm  for  three  >  ears. 

As  a  comjKinion  and  helpmate  on  life's  journey, 
in  i.s^H)  Mr  Keller  chose  Miss  Harl>ara  Weigand. 
After  t>i»erating  the  farm  three  years,  he  spent 
six  years  in  the  cultivation  of  a  farm  which  he 
rentetl  of  Solomon  Babbitt.  On  the  expiration  of 
that  perio<l  he  purcha.se<l  the  farm  on  which  he 
now  resides,  the  purchase  price  for  one  hundred 
and  fifty-three  acres  Uing  ffxi  i>er  acre  There 
were  few  improvements  ujKin  the  place,  which  is 
now  supplietl  with  gtiod  Iwrits  and  all  the  net^es- 
sary  outbuildings.  In  extent,  the  farm  has  been 
increasetl  until  it  ctmiprises  two  hundred  and 
forty-three  acres.  The  fields  are  well  tilletl,  and 
everything  al«>ut  the  pl.icc  indicates  the  careful 
superxLsion  of  the  owner. 

Ten  children  came  to  bless  the  h«>me.  as  fol- 
lows :  Anna  B..  now  the  wife  of  John  \'.  Kreg- 
ger:  George  A.,  who  oiK-rates  his  father's  farm  in 
Naperville  T<iwnship:  Mary  E..  wife  of  Frank 
Seiler.  of  Lisle  Township:  KfTie  C.  wife  of  An- 
drew Welley.  of  Lisle  Township:  I..ora  M.  and 
Kmma  H..  who  are  at  home:  Joseph  \V..  who 
ilied  April  5.  i«75.  at  the  age  of  eleven  immths; 
Ikrtie  A.,  Frank  G.  and  Alma  G..  who  are  also 
still  under  the  pariiital  ti>u{.  The  home  of  this 
family  was  erected  in  iNy.X,  at  a  cost  of  51,500. 
In  1885  a  Iwm  was  built  at  a  cost  of  $2,700.  and 
in  1883  a  twi>-story  residence  was  built  on  the 
west  side  of  the  nud  at  a  cost  of  f  1  '  in  this 

his  son  Getjrge  A .  now  resides.      .N  --  >r>    of 

a  model  farm  is  there  lacking,  and  the  improve- 
ments ujMin  the  plac^  stantl  as  Mioiuiments  to  the 
enteq>ri.se  of  the  owner. 

Mr.  Keller  has  generally   Ijeen  idetilifietl  with 


182 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


the  Democratic  party,  but  voted  for  Abraham 
Lincohi  and  Gen.  Grant,  and  has  always  endeav- 
ored to  support  the  man  whom  he  thinks  best 
quaHfied  for  the  oifice.  regardless  of  party  affilia- 
tions. He  has  served  as  vSuper\-isor  one  year, 
was  Road  Commissioner  three  years,  and  is  now 
serving  as  School  Director.  He  and  his  family 
are  members  of  the  Catholic  Church,  of  which  he 
has  ser\'ed  as  Trustee.  We  see  in  our  subject  a 
self-made  man,  whose  success  has  been  achieved 
through  his  own  labors.  Though  he  began  life 
empty-handed,  he  has  steadih-  worked  his  way 
upward,  overcoming  the  obstacles  and  difficulties 
in  his  path,  and  making  the  mo,st  of  his  opportu- 
nities. He  has  thus  acquired  a  handsome  com- 
petence, which  numbers  him  among  the  .substan- 
tial citizens  of  the  conimunit\'. 


=.^^H^l-= 


(p  Q  U  I  R  E  ERNEST  HENRY  WILLIAM 
/\  LEESEBERG,  who  is  serving  as  Notary- 
\~J  Public  in  Addison,  and  is  one  of  the  early 
settlers  of  DuPage  County,  claims  Germany  as 
the  land  of  his  birth.  That  countr\-  has  furnished 
many  worthy  citizens  to  northeastern  Illinois, 
men  who  have  been  prominent  in  the  upbuilding 
of  the  communities  in  which  they  have  located. 
Among  these  .should  be  mentioned  our  subject. 
He  was  born  in  Hanover,  November  3,  1818, 
and  his  parents,  George  F.  and  Maria  (Scheele) 
Leeseberg,  were  also  natives  of  the  same  king- 
dom. In  1842,  they  bade  adieu  to  their  home 
and  friends  and  crossed  the  Atlaiitic  to  the  New 
World.  In  DuPage  Count}-  they  .spent  their  re- 
maining days,  the  father  dxing  in  his  seventy- 
ninth  year,  and  the  mother  in  her  eighty-third 
year.  Their  family  numbered  eight  children,  of 
whom  our  subject  is  the  third,  in  order  of  birth. 

Squire  Leeseberg  was  reared  in  Germany  until 
twenty  years  of  age,  and  much  of  that  time  was 
spent  in  work  upon  the  farm.  He  also  passed 
two  years  in  a  dye-house.  In  1838  he  sailed  for 
the  United  States,  landing  at  New  Orleans,  from 
where  he  went  up  the  river  to  St.  Louis.  There 
he   spent  two    years,    engaged   in  gardening  and 


hauling  coal  with  ox  teams.  From  St.  Louis  he 
went  to  Chicago  by  stage  and  thence  came  to  Du- 
Page County,  where  he  soon  secured  employ- 
ment on  the  Illinois  &  Michigan  Canal,  working 
by  the  month  for  $13.  At  length  he  returned  to 
St.  Louis,  where  he  spent  the  two  succeeding 
years,  and  then  again  came  to  DuPage  County, 
where  he  embarked  in  farming. 

In  1848,  Mr.  Leeseberg  married  Miss  Adelina 
Brettmann,  a  native  of  Hanover,  Germany,  who 
came  to  this  country  during  her  girlhood.  She 
died  August  11,  1891.  Twelve  children  were 
born  of  that  marriage.  Of  these,  Fred  joined  the 
boys  in  blue  during  the  late  war  and  was  killed  in 
the  service:  Louisa  is  the  wife  of  Charles  Bow- 
man, of  Oak  Park,  111,;  Sophia  is  the  wife  of  J. 
W.  Senne,  of  Oak  Park;  Emma  married  Rod 
Fritzke,  of  Milwaukee;  Mary,  deceased,  was  the 
wife  of  August  Ganske;  Lesette  married  William 
Pflug,  of  Milwaukee:  Louis  is  at  home;  William 
lives  in  Melrose  Park;  and  Martha  is  the  wife  of 
Fred  Kringel,  of  Milwaukee.  Three  of  the  daugh- 
ters have  married  teachers,  and  William  is  a 
teacher  in  a  German  and  English  school. 

Upon  his  marriage.  Squire  Leeseberg  removed 
to  a  log  cabin  which  he  built,  and  which  was  sit- 
uated on  the  site  of  his  present  home.  He  has 
led  a  busy  and  useful  life,  and  through  his  indus- 
trious efforts  has  become  well-to-do.  In  politics, 
he  is  independent,  voting  for  the  man  whom  he 
thinks  best  qualified  for  the  office.  His  fellow- 
townsmen  appreciating  his  worth  and  ability,  have 
frequently  called  upon  him  to  ser\'e  in  positions 
of  public  trust,  and  for  fourteen  years  he  has  filled 
the  office  of  Ju.stice  of  the  Peace.  He  has  been 
Notarj-  Public  for  four  j-ears  and  is  now  holding 
that  office.  He  has  also  ser\-ed  as  Assessor,  was 
Commissioner  of  Highways  several  years,  and 
was  also  School  Director.  From  1871  until  1872 
he  served  as  Secretarv-  and  Treasurer  of  the  Ad- 
dison Mutual  Insurance  Company.  Being  re- 
elected to  a  number  of  the  offices  which  he  has 
filled,  it  is  thus  shown  that  he  has  discharged  his 
duties  with  promptness  and  fidelity.  Mr.  Leese- 
berg belongs  to  the  Evangelical  Church,  has  held 
many  of  its  offices,  and  is  ser\'ing  as  one  of  the 
Trustees  of  the  German  College  and  Orphan  Asy- 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL    RliCORD. 


183 


him.  He  contributes  lilK-rally  to  church  and  be- 
nevolent work,  and  his  aid  is  never  withheld  from 
any  worthy  enterprise.  Squire  I.i"esel>er);  still 
owns  one  hundretl  and  eleven  acres  of  land,  which 
yields  to  him  a  jjo^hI  income.  In  May.  1886,  he 
retunictl  to  Hanover.  Gennanw  and  sj>ent  two 
months  in  visiting  his  old  home  and  the  scenes  of 
his  lH)yhiK)d  and  renewing  the  actjuaintances  of 
his  earlier  years.  His  public  and  private  life 
have  been  alike  alxive  reproach,  and  an  honor- 
able, upright  career  has  won  him  universal  con- 
fidence and  good-will. 


*^^-f^ 


(j\  I.HI;RT  .^TANGK,  who  is  now  living  a  re- 
T\  lired  life  in  Hlmhurst.  claims  Germany  as 
/  I  the  land  of  his  birth,  which  occurred  in  the 
kingdom  of  Pms.sia.  SeptemlKT  8.  1834.  He  is 
one  of  a  family  of  seven  children,  and  his  parents, 
Fretlerick  and  Caroline  1  Huchin )  Stange,  were 
also  lx)rn  in  that  country.  The  paternal  grand- 
father was  a  dairyman  of  Ciermany,  and  reared  a 
family  of  five  children.  He  si)ent  his  entire  life 
in  the  Fatherland,  and  was  more  than  seventy 
years  of  age  when  called  to  the  home  l>eyond. 
Frederick  Stange  followe<l  the  samepursuit  as  his 
father.  In  1855  he  determined  to  seek  a  home 
and  fortune  in  the  New  World,  and  with  his  fam- 
ily sailed  for  America.  Innnediately  after  land- 
ing, he  came  to  what  was  then  Cottage  Hill,  but 
is  now  Elmhurst.  However,  he  was  not  long 
pennitte<l  to  enjoy  his  new  home,  as  his  death 
occurred  s<X)n  after,  at  the  age  of  fifty-nine.  His 
wife  sur\ive<l  him  some  years,  lioth  were  mem- 
l)ers  of  the  Lutheran  Church.  Of  thtir  family  of 
six  stms  a))d  a  daughter,  only  two  are  now  living: 
Alliert.  and  Man.,  whoisthe  wife  of  Henry  Peter 
son,  of  Chicago. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was  reared  in  tlu 
lan<l  of  his  nativity,  acquired  a  good  education  in 
the  common  .schools,  and  in  his  youth  learned  the 
millers  trade.  In  1854,  when  a  young  man  of 
twenty,  he  came  to  America  and  worked  ft)r  a 
short  time  in  New  York  City.  He  then  spent  a 
short  time  as  a  farm  hand  in  the  Ka-sl.     In   1855 


he  journeyed  westward,  and  for  a  time  was  em- 
ployetl  as  a  caqKMiter  and  also  as  a  farm  hand. 
He  Went  first  to  Shelbv  County.  III.,  and  subse- 
»|Uenlly  tti  Will  Ct»unty.  and  after  the  close  of  the 
war  he  retunie<l  to  Hlmhurst.  For  one  year  he 
wt>rke<i  on  a  farm,  and  then  .secured  a  position  in 
the  warehouse  of  I).  Struckmaini  &  Co.,  where 
he  ct)ntinue<l  for  five  years  as  an  employe.  With 
the  capital  which  he  had  save<l  from  his  earnings 
during  that  time,  he  then  purchased  Mr.  Struck- 
mann's  interest  in  the  business,  and  the  firm  Ijc- 
came  Hrownell  vS:  Stange.  This  partnership  was 
continued  until  188S,  when  our  subject  Ixjught 
out  Mr.  Hrownell's  interest  and  coutinue<l  opera- 
tions alone  for  five  years.  In  July.  189.^.  he  re- 
tired from  business. 

On  the  15th  of  April.  1859,  Mr.  Stange  wedded 
Miss  Dora  Hurman,  daughter  of  Herman  and 
Anna  (  Huhrdorl )  Hunnan.  Four  children  have 
been  lK)ni  to  them,  but  one  dietl  in  infancy.  The 
others  are.  Carrie.  Mary  and  Otto  H.  Mar>'  is 
the  wife  of  Frank  Rennner,  of  Klmhurst,  and  they 
have  one  daughter,  Irene.  Otto  H.  nmrried  Miss 
Hertha  Laude.  The  ])arents  are  Inith  meml>ers 
of  the  Kvangelical  S>  n(jd  of  North  America. 
They  have  a  plea.sant  home  in  Hlmhurst,  and  Mr. 
Stange  owns  other  ]>r<)])erty  here.  Injiolitics.  he 
is  a  Democrat,  but  has  hatl  neither  time  nor  in- 
clination to  seek  public  office.  His  life  has  been 
a  busy  and  useful  one.  devoted  to  his  business  in- 
terests, and  bv  clo.se  application  and  attention  to 
all  details  he  has  won  a  sutxtjss  which  now  en- 
ables him  to  live  retiretl.  in  the  enjoyment  of  the 
fniiLs  of  his  forna-r  toil. 


-S) 


i-^ 


^ 


"^l ORGH  A.  FISCHKR.  a  prominent  farmer. 
_,  rind  the  present  eflicient  Sni>ervi.sor  of  Addi- 
^  son  Township,  was  lx»ni  in  this  township, 
June  .v',  1851.  His  father.  Henry  1).  Fischer, 
was  a  native  of  Haiu»ver.  Germany,  and  at  the 
age  of  eighteen  years  emigrated  to  Chicago,  in 
i8-^s.  In  the  spring  of  iS;;  he  came  to  DuPage 
County,  and  tinik  up  Govenunent  lan»l  at  $1.^5 
j)er  acre.      He  was  s<H)n  afterward  joine<l  by  his 


i84 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


parents.  Mr.  Fischer  became  a  very  prominent 
and  influential  farmer,  and  at  his  death,  in  1868, 
was  the  owner  of  seven  hundred  acres  of  land. 
He  married  Maria  Franzen,  a  native  of  Pru.ssia, 
who  .still  survives  him,  and  is  living  with  our  sub- 
ject. They  were  the  parents  of  ten  children, 
of  whom  three  died  in  childhood.  August  H. 
served  as  a  Lieutenant  during  the  late  war,  and 
was  killed  at  Atlanta;  Henry  D.  is  now  de- 
ceased; Charles  died  in  childhood;  Frederick  J. 
T.  is  a  practicing  physician  of  Elmhurst;  Her- 
man A.  is  a  professor  in  Wheaton  College;  Will- 
iam H.  died  in  childhood;  George  A.  is  the  next 
\ounger;  Eliza  C.  is  the  wife  of  Rev.  R.  Menk, 
of  Loraine,  111. ;  William  H.  is  a  professor  in 
Wheaton  College;  and  Henrietta  died  in  child- 
hood. 

The  first  school  which  our  subject  attended  was 
the  common  district  school,  and  later  he  spent 
three  winter  terms  in  Wheaton  College.  With 
the  exception  of  one  year  spent  in  the  nursery 
business,  he  has  followed  farming  throughout  his 
entire  life.  He  now  owns  three  hundred  acres  of 
rich  land,  under  a  high  state  of  cultivation.  He 
makes  a  specialty  of  dairy  farming,  and  keeps 
thirty  head  of  cows  for  this  purpo.se.  Recently  he 
has  erected  a  fine  residence  at  a  cost  of  $4,000, 
and  the  other  improvements  are  in  keeping  with 
the  home. 

In  January,  1876,  Mr.  Fischer  married  Mary 
Franzen,  a  native  of  Cook  County,  and  to  them 
were  born  five  .sons  and  three  daughters,  as  fol- 
lows: Flora  M.,  now  deceased;  Edgar  B.,  who  is 
attending  Wheaton  College;  Henry  F. ;  George 
H.  and  Mary  L.,  twins;  Arvin  W.;  Lucy  C.  and 
Frank  F.  All  were  born  upon  the  home  farm, 
where  occurred  the  birth  of  the  father  and  of  his 
brothers  and  .sisters. 

In  politics,  Mr.  Fischer  is  a  Republican,  and 
has  been  honored  with  various  offices.  Since 
1876  he  has  .served  as  Township  Treasurer,  was 
Township  Assessor  two  },ears,  and  was  elected 
Justice  of  the  Peace,  but  would  not  .serve.  He 
has  been  a  Director  of  the  Addison  Mutual  Fire 
Insurance  Company.  In  1S90  he  was  elected 
Super\'isor,  was  re-elected  in  1891,  and  again  in 
1893  for  a  two-years  term,  a  fact  which  shows  the 


confidence  repo.sed  in  him,  and  that  this  trust 
has  never  been  betrayed.  He  holds  membership 
with  the  Evangelical  Church.  He  is  one  of  the 
early  .settlers  of  Addison  Township,  and  has  wit- 
ne.ssed  much  of  the  development  and  progress  of 
the  county.  In  its  advancement  and  upbuilding 
he  feels  a  just  pride,  and  in  the  work  of  improve- 
ment he  has  ever  borne  his  part. 


[^~ 


|~RED  STUENKEL  is  a  retired  farmer  and 
10  earl\-  settler  now  living  in  Bensenville.  He 
I  is  so  well  known  throughout  DuPage  Coun- 
ty- that  he  needs  no  .special  introduction  to  our 
readers,  but  we  feel  assured  that  the  record  of  his 
life  will  prove  of  interest  to  many.  Like  nianj-  of 
the  citizens  of  this  connnunity,  he  is  a  native  of 
Germany.  He  was  bom  in  Hanover,  on  the  14th 
of  February,  1825,  and  is  the  second  child  of 
Frederick  Stuenkel.  His  father  was  also  a  na- 
tive of  that  locality,  and  after  arriving  at  years  of 
maturity  he  was  united  in  marriage  with  Dorothy 
Kneege,  who  was  also  bom  in  Hanover.  In 
1836  they  left  their  native  land  for  the  New 
World,  and,  choosing  DuPage  County  as  the 
scene  of  their  future  labors,  the  father  here  en- 
tered land  from  the  Government.  He  then  fol- 
lowed farming  until  his  death,  which  occurred  in 
1850.  His  wife  sun-ived  him  only  four  years, 
when  she  too  passed  away. 

Our  subject  was  about  eleven  years  of  age 
when  his  parents  emigrated  to  the  New  World. 
Under  the  parental  roof. he  was  reared  to  man- 
hood, and  to  his  father  he  gave  the  benefit  of  his 
ser\-ices  until  his  marriage  in  1847,  Miss  Marj- 
Marquardt  becoming  his  wife.  She  was  born  in 
Hanover,  and  came  to  this  county  when  a  young 
lady  of  eighteen  years.  They  located  on  a  farm 
near  the  village  of  Addi.son,  and  there  Mr.  Stuen- 
kel engaged  in  general  merchandising  for  some 
time.  He  also  carried  on  the  manufacture  of 
cheese  for  about  seven  years.  In  1S87  he  re- 
moved to  his  present  place  of  abode. 

To  our  subject  and  his  wife  were  born  ten  chil- 
dren, two  sons  and  eight  daughters,  all  born  in 


Hexrv  L-  Glos. 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RFXORD. 


187 


Addison  Township:  Frederick,  who  is  now  li\-ing 
in  Arlington  Heights:  William,  who  occupies  the 
old  honiesti-a<l :  Sophia,  wife  of  August  Wolk 
henhauer:  Louisa,  wife  of  August  .\she,  of  Hen- 
senville:  Man,  wife  of  Williani  Schmidt,  of 
Arlington  Heights;  Caroline,  wife  of  William 
Slruckmeyer,  of  Minnesjta;  Augusta,  deceased; 
Itora.  wife  of  William  Gray,  who  is  living  in 
Fullersburg,  York  Township;  and  Matilda,  wife 
of  Ed  Brtist,  a  teacher  of  Addison. 

Mr.  Stuenkel  usually  votes  the  Denjocratic 
ticket,  but  supported  Gen.  Grant.  He  holds 
membership  with  the  Lutheran  ChuR-h,  and  has 
scned  in  its  offices.  Indolence  and  idleness  are 
utterly  foreign  to  his  nature,  and  untiring  lalwr 
and  perseverance  brought  hitn  the  handsome  com- 
petence which  now  numbers  him  among  the 
well-to-do  citizens  of  the  community,  and  enables 
him  to  Uve  a  retired  life.  His  residence  in  this 
county  covers  a  period  of  fifty-seven  years. 
Much  of  his  youth  was  pas.sed  here,  and  this  has 
been  the  scene  of  his  entire  manhotxl  career. 
He  has  witnessed  the  growth  and  development  of 
the  town  and  county,  and  in  all  possible  ways 
has  aided  in  its  advancement,  for  he  takes  a 
commendable  interest  in  the  general  welfare  of 
the  community  with  which  he  has  so  long  been 
identified. 

S        *  c=j^  ?  >[=  '        s 

WI:NRY  L.  Gl.OS.  who  is  engaged  in  the  real- 
oiate  business  in  Elnihurst.  was  Iwrn  near 
this  place,  on  the  31st  of  December,  1851. 
His  jarents.  Adam  and  Catherine  .Soffell  1  Glos, 
were  natives  of  Bavaria.  The  paternal  grand- 
£ither,  John  Glos,  served  as  a  soldier  under  Na- 
poletni.  and  die<l  at  the  advance<l  age  of  ninety - 
five.  His  family  numbered  five  children.  The 
maternal  grandfather,  John  Soffell.  spent  his  en- 
tire life  in  Germany.  The  father  of  our  subject 
was  a  fanner  by  occupation,  and  came  to  America 
in  1835.  locating  at  his  present  home  in  DuPage 
County,  where  his  father  purchased  om-  hundred 
and  sixty  acres  of  land.  To  this  Adam  Glos  has 
added  ft^om  time  to  time  until  he  now  owns  over 


seven  hundred  acres  of  valuable  land.  Both  he 
and  wife  are  meml)crs  of  the  German  Evangelical 
Church,  and  are  highly  respectetl  citizens  through- 
out the  conimunily  in  which  they  make  their 
home.  In  their  family  were  ten  children,  five 
s«ms  and  five  daughters,  of  whom  three  sons  and 
two  daughters  are  now  living,  namely:  Adam  S.; 
Henn.-  L- :  Jacob;  Catherine,  wife  of  August 
Tinike,  who  is  living  near  South  Elrahurst;  and 
Man,   A. 

Henry  L.  Glos  was  reared  upon  his  father's 
farm,  there  remaining  until  eighteen  years  of  age. 
He  actjuired  his  early  education  in  the  public 
schools,  and  was  after>\ard  graduated  from  the 
Bryant  &  Stratton  Business  College  of  Chicago. 
Subsequently,  he  engaged  in  teaching  school  in 
Elmhurst  for  six  years,  and  then  embarked  in 
general  merchandising. which  he  successfully  con- 
tinued until  I  S.s6,  when  he  turned  his  attention  to 
the  real-estate  business,  which  he  has  since  fol- 
lowed. 

On  the  26th  of  June,  1876,  Mr.  Glos  was  united 
in  marriage  with  Miss  Lucy  M.  Schween,  daugh- 
ter of  William  and  Sophia  ^  Boske  )  Schween.  of 
Elgin,  who  were  natives  of  Hanover.  Germany. 
Both  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Glos  are  members  of  the 
German  Evangelical  Church,  and  are  people  of 
many  excellencies  of  character,  widely  and  favor- 
ably knowni  throughout  the  comnmnity.  Their 
home,  an  elegant  stone  structure,  is  the  finest  res- 
idence in  Filmhursl.     There  hospitality  reigns  su- 

;  preme,  and  it  is  a  favorite  resort  for  their  many 
friends. 

In  politics,  Mr.  GUjs  affiliates  with  the  Repub- 

'  lican  party.  Under  President  Harrison  he  re- 
ceive<l  the  appointment  of  Postmaster  of  Elmhurst. 
which  he  resigneil  March  4.  1S93,  but  held  the 
office  until  November  6,  as  no  successor  had  been 
appointetl.  He  has  l>een  Presi<letit  of  the  Village 
Iktard  for  tc-n  years,  and  was  Supervisor  of  the 
town  for  a  number  of  years,  and  it  is  needless  to 
say  that  he  has  proved  a  cajMble  official.  No 
higher  testimonial  of  his  fidelity  to  duty  could  be 
given  than  hii»  constant  re-election.  Mr.  Glos 
owns  large  landeil  interests  in  DuPage  and  Cook 
C«mnties,  and  all  this  has  been  accunmlatcd 
through  his  own  effi>rts.     He  has  led  a  busy  and 


188 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


useful  life,  and  as  the  result  has  won  prosperity. 
He  is  broad,  liberal-minded  and  progressive,  and 
the  best  interests  of  Elmhurst  and  the  community 
have  ever  found  in  him  a  warm  friend. 


.1^ 


§-^-f^! 


NENRY  WINSLOW  HUBBARD,  the  popular 
and  efficient  agent  for  the  Chicago  &  North- 
western Railroad  Company  located  at  Wayne, 
is  numbered  among  the  native  sons  of  Illinois. 
He  was  born  in  Kane  County,  October  7,  1842, 
and  is  a  son  of  John  Hubbard,  a  native  of  New 
York,  who  emigrated  westward  to  this  State  in 
1833,  and  made  one  of  the  fir.st  settlements  in 
Kane  County.  There  he  opened  up  a  farm,  upon 
wliich  he  spent  his  remaining  days,  his  death  oc- 
curring in  1855.  His  wife  passed  away  in  1864. 
Their  family  numbered  .six  sons  and  three  daugh- 
ters, all  of  whom  grew  to  mature  j-ears  and  be- 
came heads  of  families,  and,  with  the  exception 
of  the  eldest,  all  are  yet  living. 

Henr^-  \V.  Hubbard  spent  the  days  of  his  boy- 
hood and  youth  quietly.  He  worked  on  a  fann 
in  the  summer  months,  and  in  the  winter  season 
conned  his  lessons  in  the  common  schools.  A 
decided  change  in  his  life  took  place,  however,  in 
September,  1861,  for  he  left  the  peaceful  pursuits 
of  the  farm  to  aid  his  countr\-  in  her  .struggle  to 
preserv-e  the  Union.  It  was  in  September,  1861, 
that  he  joined  Company  F,  Fifteenth  Illinois  In- 
fantr\'.  Going  to  the  front,  he  participated  in  the 
battles  of  Ft.  Donelson  and  Shiloh,  and  the  long- 
siege  and  capture  of  Vicksburg.  Later  he  went 
with  Sherman  on  the  celebrated  march  to  the  sea, 
and  at  last  took  part  in  the  most  brilliant  military 
pageant  ever  seen  on  this  .side  of  the  globe — the 
Grand  Review  in  Washington,  where  the  victori- 
ous troops  marched  through  the  streets  of  the  city 
which,  as  the  result  of  their  sacrifices,  was  still 
the  capital  of  the  united  nation. 

When  the  war  was  over  Mr.  Hubbard  received 
his  discharge.  He  had  escaped  without  wounds 
or  injury,  yet  he  was  always  found  in  the  thickest 
of  the  battle,  valiantly  defending  the  Old  Flag. 
Returning  home,  he  continued  farm  work  for  some 


time.  In  Februan,-,  1881,  he  was  appointed  sta- 
tion agent  of  Wayne,  and,  having  learned  teleg- 
raphy, he  was  also  made  telegraph  operator. 
These  positions  he  has  since  acceptablj-  filled. 

In  Algonquin,  111.,  in  1868,  was  celebrated  the 
marriage  of  Mr.  Hubbard  and  Miss  Allie  Pinker- 
ton,  a  native  of  McHenry  Count},-,  III.,  and  a 
daughter  of  William  Pinkertoii,  one  of  the  early 
settlers  of  that  county.  Four  children  were  born 
unto  them,  three  of  whom  are  still  li\-ing:  Ina  E., 
a  highly  educated  young  lady,  who  is  now  success- 
fully engaged  in  teaching  in  the  High  vSchool  of 
Elgin;  Arthur  P.  and  Mer\-in.  They  lo.st  a  daugh- 
ter, Clara,  who  died  November  8,  1892,  at  the 
age  of  twenty  years. 

Mr.  Hubbard  has  long  witnessed  the  growth 
and  development  of  DuPage  County,  and  since 
locating  within  its  borders  has  done  all  in  his  power  ' 
for  its  advancement  and  progress.  He  is  a  man 
of  upright  cliaracter,  and  lias  won  the  confidence 
and  esteem  of  the  entire  community  by  his  well* 
spent  and  honorable  life.  He  is  a  Master  Mason, 
al.so  belongs  to  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  Wayne, 
and  his  e.stimable  wife  is  a  member  of  the  Congre- 
gational Church.  Since  casting  his  fir.st  Presi- 
dential vote  for  Abraham  Lincoln  in  1864,  he  has 
been  a  stanch  advocate  of  the  men  and  measures 
of  the  Republican  party. 


]^^-^[ 


[ILLIAM  BARUTH  is  a  worthy  represen- 
tative of  the  business  interests  of  Itasca, 
where  he  is  engaged  in  general  merchan- 
dising, carrying  a  well-selected  stock  of  dry 
goods,  boots  and  shoes,  groceries,  crocker\-,  wines, 
liquors  and  patent  medicines.  By  his  fair  and 
honest  dealing  and  earnest  desire  to  please  his 
customers,  he  has  won  a  liberal  patronage,  and 
his  success  is  well  deserved. 

Mr.  Baruth,  a  native  of  Hanover,  German\-, 
was  born  on  the  3d  of  Augu.st,  1838,  and  spent 
the  first  eighteen  years  of  his  life  in  his  nati\e 
land.  It  was  in  1856  that  he  crossed  the  briny 
deep  to  New  York  City,  hoping  to  improve  his 
financial  condition  therebv.     For  two  vears  he 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


1S9 


there  worked  as  a  clerk  in  a  ^roceO'  store.  In 
1S5S  he  went  to  Chicago,  and  from  there  going 
to  Lake  County  liecanie  a  farm  hand  in  the  em- 
ploy of  William  Knieger,  with  whom  he  remained 
thrtx-  and  a-half  years.  The  first  two  years  he 
received  Jioo,  and  the  last  year  5i  it>- 

In  1S62.  Mr.  Banith  entered  the  service  of  his 
country.  lK*o>miiin  a  mend)er  of  Company  C,  One 
Hundre<l  and  Thirteenth  Illinois  Infantry,  in 
which  he  ser\e<l  for  three  years.  At  the  battle  of 
Guntown  he  was  wounded  in  the  shoulder. 
While  stning  on  picket  duty  at  Arkansas  Post. 
he  was  again  wounded,  and  near  Vicksburg, 
Miss.,  he  was  wounded  in  the  ankle,  but  he  con- 
tinue<l  in  the  service  as  a  faithful  defender  of  the 
Stars  aud  Stripes  until  honorabl\-  discharged  at 
Memphis,  Tenn..  in  1,^65. 

Immediately  afterwards.  Mr.  Baruth  retunied 
to  Chicago,  where  he  began  clerking  in  a  grocery-  1 
store,  and  was  in  the  employ  of  one  man  until 
1868.  when  he  Ixmght  out  his  employer,  and  car- 
ried on  business  for  him.self  until  1871.  In  the 
great  fire  of  that  year  his  store  was  also  destroyed, 
but  he  afterwards  opened  a  store  on  Milwaukee 
Avenue,  where  he  remained  for  eighteen  months. 
Bv  economy  and  dose  attention  to  business  during 
that  time,  he  had  .somewhat  retrieved  his  lost  jxjs- 
sessions,  and  he  started  again  at  Xo.  74  Wells 
Street,  where  he  was  d<iing  business  when  burnetl 
out.  "here  he  continued,  enjoying  an  excellent 
trade,  until  1884,  when  he  came  to  Itasca,  and 
established  his  present  business. 

In  1 868.  Mr.  Baruth  was  united  in  marriage 
with  Miss  Mar>-  Huehl,  a  native  of  Cook  C<muty. 
They  Ix^ame  the  parents  of  five  children,  two 
sons  and  three  daughters:  William,  Jr.,  who  was 
boni  in  Chicago  in  1869:  Carrie,  who  was  bom  in 
Chicago,  and  is  now  tlie  wife  of  Lewis  Stroniberg, 
of  Klmhurst;  Herman,  who  was  lx)rn  and  died  in 
Chicago;  Emma,  who  was  born  in  Chicago;  and 
I.^wis,  who  was  txirn  in  Itasca. 

Socially,  Mr.  Baruth  is  a  Royal  Arch  Mason, 
belonging  to  the  Blue  L<xlge  and  Chapter  of 
Chicago,  and  he  is  a  charter  member  of  Gennania 
Lodge  No.  2.  K.  P.  He  also  fonnerly  l>elonge<I 
to  the  Odd  Fellows'  Society,  and  now  holds  mem- 
bership with  the  Druids,  a  German  organization. 


and  the  Chicago  Sharp-shooters.  He  likewise 
belongs  to  Hancock  Post  No,  560,  G.  A,  R.,  of 
Chicago,  in  which  he  lias  held  several  offices. 
In  politics,  he  is  now  a  Democrat,  but  voted  for 
Lincoln  and  Grant.  For  two  terms  hehasservetl 
as  a  member  of  the  \'illage  Boanl.  Mr.  Bamth 
possesses  the  same  enterprise  and  indomitable 
spirit  which  characterize  Chicago  as  a  city,  and  has 
made  his  business  career  a  most  successful  one. 
When  he  came  to  this  country-,  he  l)egan  clerking 
in  New  York  for  $6  per  week.  Out  of  his  mea- 
gre earnings  he  .saved  enough  to  l>egin  business 
for  him.self,  and  has  steadily  worked  his  way  up- 
ward to  a  position  of  wealth  and  influence.  He 
need  never  regret  the  day  that  lie  detennined  to 
seek  a  home  and  fortune  in  the  New  World,  for 
his  expectations  have  Ijeen  more  than  realized, 
and  success  has  crowned  his  efforts. 


c=i 


^■^l 


(lOHN  C.  NKLTNOR  is  the  owner  and  publish- 
I  er  of  the  I^iiPagt-  Comi/j  Dtmoaal.  and  he  al.so 
(2/  owns  and  carries  on  a  drug  store.  Under  the 
administration  of  President  Cleveland  he  was  the 
efficient  Poslma.ster  of  Turner,  and  has  recently 
received  the  appointment  to  the  position  for  the 
second  time.  His  fellow-citizens  have  frequently 
honored  him  with  various  important  positions  of 
responsibility  and  tru.st,  and  their  confidence  has 
been  each  and  every  time  well  justified  by  the 
able  and  honorable  maimer  in  which  lie  has  sers'ed 
theni. 

The  birlli  of  our  subject  (K-curred  at  Erie.  Pa., 
November  7.  1.S41.  His  parents,  Francis  X.  and 
Man,-  (  Run.ser)  Neltnor.  were  natives  of  Baden, 
Germany.  Their  famih-  compri.sed  six  children, 
three  sons  ami  three  daughters,  of  whom  our  sub- 
ject is  the  eldest,  the  others  l)eing  as  follows: 
Mary;  Margaret;  Sojihia,  wife  of  Thoin.is  Morley, 
General  Ticket  Agent  of  the  Northwestern  Rail- 
road; Frank  Iv :  and  George  N.,  deceased.  The 
father  was  for  man\-  years  a  merchant  tailor  t)f 
BliMnningdale,  111.  He  was  one  of  the  early  set- 
tlers of  DuPage  County,  having  removed  Irom 
Pennsylvania  in  1847.      He  continued  to  reside  in 


I  go 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


Bloomingdale  until  Maj-,  1881,  when  he  died  at 
the  age  of  sixty-four  years.  His  wife  still  sur- 
^nves  him  and  is  now  in  her  se\-enty-secoud  year. 
She  is  a  member  of  the  Catholic  Church.  The 
father  was  both  a  Mason  and  an  Odd  Fellow,  and 
was  a  man  of  such  genuine  integrity  and  worth 
that  he  won  the  respect  of  every  one. 

John  C.  Xeltnor  was  about  six  years  old  when 
his  parents  came  to  settle  in  the  West,  and  he  was 
reared  in  Bloomingdale,  there  receiving  his  early 
education.  Afterward  he  further  pursued  his 
studies  in  the  Naper\'ille  Academy,  from  which 
institution  he  graduated  in  1858.  He  began  his 
business  career  as  a  clerk  in  a  general  store  in 
1855,  and  for  three  years  continued  as  such  when 
not  in  college.  He  was  employed  in  a  like  ca- 
pacity until  1863,  when  he  purchased  an  interest 
in  the  store  of  his  former  employer.  Dr.  Sedg\vick. 
After  doing  business  together  for  two  years,  the 
connection  was  dissolved  by  mutual  consent. 

The  marriage  of  Mr.  Neltnor  was  celebrated 
on  the  20th  of  September,  1865,  with  Miss  Mary 
E.,  daughter  of  Anthony  R.  and  Cornelia  (Eames) 
Kinney.  Seven  children  have  been  born  to  this 
union,  five  sons  and  two  daughters,  namely; 
Clinton  J.,  Kirk  K.,  Carroll  E.,  Shelley  P., 
Frank  C. ,  Cornelia  J.  and  Carrie  L.  Kirk,  the 
second  son,  married  Miss  Nellie  Ryan. 

It  was  in  1865  that  Mr.  Neltnor  became  a  cit- 
izen of  Turner.  He  opened  a  general  store  and 
drug  store,  and  has  since  continued  to  carrj-  on 
these  two  lines  of  business.  In  1870  he  em- 
barked in  a  new  enterprise,  in  connection  with  a 
Mr.  Richmond,  engaging  in  the  nursery  business. 
When  a  few  years  had  passed  he  purchased  his 
partner's  interest  and  succeeded  to  the  whole 
business.  He  has  about  twentj-  acres,  and  makes 
a  specialty  of  '  'hardy,  iron-clad  stock. ' '  In  addi- 
tion to  this  propertj',  he  owns  other  real  estate  in 
the  village  and  a  good  home. 

Mr.  Neltnor  is  a  gentleman  who  is  not  discour- 
aged in  entering  a  new  field,  but  brings  to  bear 
his  native  qualities  of  energy  and  well-directed 
eifort  upon  whatever  he  chooses  to  undertake, 
and  in  this  way  has  made  a  success  of  his  various 
enterprises.  In  1889,  he  entered  the  newspaper 
business,   beginning  the    publication  of  the  Du- 


Page  County  Democrat,  and  in  the  few  years  that 
have  since  elapsed  it  has  met  with  a  flattering  re- 
ception, which  is  proven  by  the  fact  that  its  circu- 
lation has  gone  far  beyond  any  of  the  older  pa- 
pers in  the  county.  In  politics,  Mr.  Neltnor  is  a 
Democrat,  and  makes  his  paper  a  true  exponent 
of  the  theories  and  aims  of  his  party.  He  has 
frequently  been  sent  as  a  delegate  to  prominent 
political  conventions,  and  is  considered  an  able 
referee  on  all  questions  relating  to  the  part}-.  For 
several  terms  he  was  a  member  of  the  \'illage 
Board  of  Trustees,  and  at  the  present  time  is 
Police  Magistrate  and  Notary  Public. 


M 


S.  ELLSWORTH  was  elected  to  the  re- 
sponsible position  of  County  Clerk  of  Du- 
Page  County  in  December,  1877,  and  has 
proven  a  conscientious  and  faithful  officer  up  to 
the  present  time.  He  is  popular  and  ven,-  well 
liked,  which  fact  has  been  shown  b>-  his  re-elec- 
tion to  the  office  each  con,secutive  term.  More- 
over, he  is  one  of  the  earliest  settlers  of  the 
county,  having  come  West  to  Naper\-ille  in  Oc- 
tober, 1837. 

The  birth  of  Mr.  Ellsworth  occurred  in  Troy, 
N.  Y.,  September  8,  1829,  his  parents  being 
Lewis  and  Chloe  M.  Ellsworth.  The  father  on 
arriving  in  this  county  settled  on  a  farm  at  Na- 
perville,  and  also  engaged  in  merchandising  in 
that  place.  He  was  one  of  the  founders  of  the  Illi- 
nois State  Agricultural  Society,  and  sen-ed  as  its 
President  for  two  terms.  He  was  a  man  highl\- 
respected  and  widely  known  throughout  the  State, 
and  during  the  first  four  years  of  the  war  he  was 
United  States  Revenue  Collector.  He  died  at 
Naperville,  aged  about  eighty  years.  The  moth- 
er's death  occurred  when  she  was  in  her  se\en- 
tieth  year.  Their  family  comprised  two  sons, 
Milton  S.  and  Lewis  C. 

A  lad  of  eight  years  when  he  removed  to  Illi- 
nois, Mr.  Ellsworth  has  therefore  pas.sed  the  most 
important  years  of  his  life  in  this  immediate  sec- 
tion. After  completing  his  common-school  edu- 
cation, he  attended  the  Rock  River  Seminar}-,   at 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


lyl 


Mt.  Morris,  111.,  pursuing  his  studii^i  there  for  a 
year  and  a-half.  He  then  clerked  in  !.is  father's 
store  ;it  Xai>erville.  and  afterwards  went  into 
partnershij)  with  him  in  the  nur?<ery  linsines.s. 

Mr.  KUsworth  was  married  on  the  22d  of  May, 
1S54.  to  Miss  Jane  Iv  Harber.  dauj^hter  of  John 
Barber.  Their  union  has  l>een  hlesseti  with  a 
son  and  daughter,  twins:  Lewis,  who  married 
Miss  Luella  Miller,  of  Wheaton.  by  whom  he  has 
three  diildreii,  Lewis  M.,  drant  and  Kali)h  P.: 
and  Carrie,  who  lives  with  her  parents. 

For  sixteen  years  Mr.  I'"llsworth  has  discharged 
the  duties  of  County  Clerk  to  the  full  satisfaction 
of  his  constituents  and  friends,  and  no  greater 
tribute  to  his  integrity  could  l>e  given  than  his 
continuance  in  office  for  .so  many  years.  In  poli- 
tics, he  formerly  supported  the  Whig  party,  but 
since  its  organization  has  tx-en  one  of  the  firm 
adherents  of  the  Republican  parly. 


\^-^r^l 


Qo^KVU  HOFl-MAX,  who  is  successfully  en- 
I  staged  in  farming  on  section  21,  Milton 
G/  'r(jwnship,  is  recognized  as  one  of  the  enter- 
prising and  progressive  agriculturists  of  I)u  Page 
County.  He  was  born  in  Baden,  Germany,  in 
1836,  and  is  a  son  of  Johan  Hoffman.  His  mo- 
ther bore  the  maiden  name  of  Mary  Ami  Krnst. 
With  their  family  of  si.\  children,  the  parents  left 
the  Fatherland  in  1S47.  and  crossed  the  wide 
ocean  to  the  New  World,  where  they  hoped  to 
find  a  pleasant  home.  Landing  at  New  York, 
they  went  direct  to  Chicago,  traveling  by  way  of 
the  Erie  Canal  and  Great  Lakes.  Johan  Hoffman 
settled  upon  the  farm  which  is  now  the  home  of 
•ur  subject,  and  for  several  years  there  carried  on 
agricultural  pursuits. 

Josej)h  HotTman  whose  name  heads  this  record 
began  working  out  for  wages  at  the  age  of  eleven 
years,  his  father  rec-eiving  his  earnings  inilil  he 
was  nineteen,  when  he  Ijegan  life  on  his  own  ac- 
count. As  a  companion  and  helpmate  on  life's 
journey,  he  chose  Miss  Helen  l/jser,  a  native  of 
Alsace,  Francx-.  Their  union  was  cxrlebrated  in 
1857,   and  has  been  bles.scd  with  a  family  of  six 


children.  Frant/J.  niarrie<l  Miss  I.^na  Cassel. 
They  have  one  son,  Benjamin.  John  A.  weddetl 
.•\nnie  Rieser  and  they  have  one  child,  Fre<l. 
Catherine  is  the  widow  of  Frank  Drendel,  b\ 
whom  she  had  two  daughters,  Enuna  and  Helen. 
The  ><iuiiger  memliers  of  the  Hoffman  family  are 
lunma,  .Minnie  L.  anii  Henry  Joseph. 

As  liefore  .stated,  Mr.  Hoffman  now  owns  and 
oi>erales  the  old  homestead  of  his  father,  compris- 
ing one  hundred  and  sixty-two  acres  of  arable 
and  valuable  land.  Recently,  he  has  also  pur- 
chased thirt\-nine  acrc-s  on  section  21.  Milton 
Township,  where  he  now  resi<les.  This  fann, 
though  .small,  is  one  of  the  best-cultivatetl  and 
improved  in  the  community,  and  its  neat  apjx-ar- 
ance  indicates  the  careful  supervision  of  the 
owner.  He  has  built  upon  it  a  good  house  and 
barn,  and  has  added  all  the  other  acces-sories  of  a 
model  farm.  The  placx-  is  pleasanth-  situated  one 
mile  south  of  Wheaton. 

Mr.  Hoffman  possesses  the  |K-rseverance  and 
diligence  characteristic  of  the  German  j>eople.  and 
owing  to  his  good  management  and  well-directed 
efforts,  is  now  the  owner  of  a  valuable  property. 
His  life  has  indeed  been  a-  busy  and  u.seful  one. 
In  politics,  he  is  independent,  striving  to  vote  for 
the  best  man,  regardless  of  j)arty  affiliations.  He 
was  elected  and  served  as  Highway  Commis.sioner, 
and  so  well  did  he  discharge  the  duties  of  that 
office  that  he  was  twice  re-elected.  Himself  and 
wife  are  members  of  the  Catholic  Church  of 
Wheaton,  and  in  the  community  where  they  re- 
side they  have  many  warm  friends,  who  hold  them 
in  high  esteem  for  their  many  excellencies  of 
character  and  their  sterling  worth. 


*m->^^-m^ 


3 


.\C()B  1:.  BI-:NI)1:R.  one  of  the  well  known 
•iiid  highly-resj>e<.-ted  fanners  of  Blo<jming- 
dale  Township,  who  owns  aiul  oj)erates  one 
hundred  and  sixty  acres  of  land  on  .section  16,  is 
a  native  of  Hesse- Darmstadt,  Gennany.  The 
Bender  family  came  from  the  village  of  Klcin- 
Karben,  and  our  subject  was  there  Ixirn  Ajiril  2, 
1843.     His  father,  Michael  Bender,  was  also  Ixint 


1C)2 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


in  Hesse- Darmstadt,  and  there  married  Elizabeth 
Neuhardt,  a  lady  of  German  birth.  In  1855  he 
emigrated  with  his  famih-  to  the  Xew  World,  tak- 
ing passage  on  a  vessel  at  Hamburg,  which,  on 
the  i6th  of  May.  1858.  dropped  anchor  in  the 
harbor  of  New  York.  He  went  at  once  to  Chi- 
cago, and  after  a  week  came  to  Bloomingdale 
Township,  where  he  purchased  one  hundred  and 
sixty  acres  of  land,  the  farm  upon  which  his  son 
now  resides.  The  land  was  partially  improved 
and  had  a  small  house  upon  it.  To  its  further 
development  and  cultivation  the  father  devoted 
his  energies  until  his  death.  He  returned  on  a 
visit  to  his  native  land  in  1872.  and  spent  many 
pleasant  hours  in  renewing  the  friendships  of  his 
youth,  and  in  strolling  through  scenes  which  were 
familiar  in  his  boyhood.  He  died  October  13, 
1883,  and  his  wife  passed  away  ten  weeks  later. 
They  lie  buried  in  Bloomingdale  Cemetery,  where 
a  marble  monument  marks  their  last  resting-place. 

Mr.  Bender  whose  name  heads  this  record  is 
the  youngest  son  in  a  family  of  eight  children. 
He  spent  the  first  fifteen  years  of  his  life  in  the 
land  of  his  birth,  and  acquired  a  good  education 
in  the  mother  tongue.  He  also  attended  the  Eng- 
lish schools  after  coming  to  this  country.  He  re- 
mained with  his  father  on  the  old  homestead,  and 
after  his  death  succeeded  to  the  ownership  of  the 
farm,  upon  which  he  has  made  many  excellent 
improvements,  that  add  both  to  the  value  and  at- 
tractive appearance  of  the  place.  He  has  erected 
a  substantial  residence,  built  a  good  barn,  gran- 
arj'  and  other  outbuildings,  until  this  is  now  one  of 
the  best  improved  and  finest  farms  of  the  county. 

On  the  26th  of  December,  1870,  Mr.  Bender 
was  united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Wilhelmina  Iser, 
a  native  of  Germany.  They  have  nine  children: 
Emma,  wife  of  August  Meyer,  of  Bloomingdale 
Township;  and  Sophia.  Mina,  John,  Lucy,  Katie, 
Philip,  Edwin  and  Jacob.  The  family  attends  the 
Evangelical  Church,  and  are  highly-respected 
people  of  the  community. 

In  politics,  Mr.  Bender  supports  the  men  and 
measures  of  the  Democratic  party,  and  his  first 
Presidential  vote  was  cast  for  Gen.  George  B. 
McClellan  in  1864.  He  takes  quite  an  active  in- 
terest in  local  politics,  and  has  been  honored  with 


a  number  of  oflBcial  positions,  having  served  as 
Township  Collector,  Assessor  and  Super\4sor. 
He  is  now  ser\-ing  as  a  member  of  the  Count>' 
Board  of  Supen-isors,  and  discharges  his  duties 
with  the  same  fidelity-  and  trustworthiness  that 
have  characterized  his  entire  official  career.  He 
frequently  sen"es  as  a  delegate  to  the  conventions 
of  his  party.  Socially,  he  is  a  Ma.ster  Mason. 
For  thirt3-five  years  he  has  been  a  resident  of 
DuPage  County,  and  has  witnessed  much  of  its 
growth  and  development.  He  alwaj"s  takes  an  ac- 
tive interest  in  exerything  pertaining  to  the  wel- 
fare of  the  community,  and  his  duties  of  citizen- 
sliip  are  promptly  performed.  He  has  led  an  ex- 
emplar>'  life,  and  those  who  know  him  esteem 
him  highly  for  his  sterling  worth  and  strict  integ- 
ritv. 


^+^ 


[=_ 


"S] 


(lOHN  A.  RICHARDS,  who  resides  on  section 
I  23,  Lisle  Township,  has  been  a  resident  of 
C2/  DuPage  County  for  more  than  half  acenturv', 
his  residence  here  dating  from  1836.  In  the  long 
years  which  have  since  come  and  gone,  he  has 
not  only  witnessed  the  growth  and  progress  of  the 
county,  but  has  ever  borne  his  part  in  the  work 
of  development  and  upbuilding.  Many  works  of 
public  improvement  have  been  greatly  promoted 
b}-  his  untiring  efforts.  As  he  is  so  widel>-  and 
favorably  known  throughout  this  community,  we 
feel  assured  that  the  record  of  his  life  will  prove 
of  interest  to  man}-  of  our  readers. 

Mr.  Richards  was  born  in  Hillsboro  County, 
X.  H.,  October  31,  1803,  and  is  a  son  of  Nicholas 
and  Sallie  (Adams)  Richards.  The  father  was  a 
native  of  New  England,  and  was  of  English  ex- 
traction. When  a  young  man  he  learned  the 
baker's  trade,  which  he  followed  throughout  his 
entire  life.  He  was  twice  married,  and  by  the  first 
union  had  fi\'e  children  and  by  the  second  two. 
His  death  occurred  at  the  age  of  sixty  years.  The 
mother  of  our  subject,  who  also  came  of  an  old 
New  England  family,  of  English  origin,  died  at 
the  early  age  of  twenty-eight. 

The  father  entered  the  army  as  a  baker  during 
the  War  of  1S12,  and  the  mother  dying  in  March, 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


'93 


1813.  John  A.  Richards  went  to  live  with  an  un- 
cle. John  Adams,  of  Enosburg,  \'t.,  where  he  re- 
mained from  the  a^e  of  ten  years  until  hi-  had  at- 
tained to  man's  estate.  He  tl»en  Ixxaii  workinK 
by  the  month  as  a  fann  hand,  and  was  thus  em- 
ployed in  the  Ivast  nntil  Uctolnrr.  >S.>.;.  The  year 
iS-?5  witnes.scd  his  arrival  in  Illinois,  and  the  fol- 
lowing year  he  entered  land  on  section  2^^,  Lisle 
Township,  I)nPa>;e  County,  where  he  has  since 
made  his  home.  His  time  and  enert;ies  have  l»een 
de\oted  to  farm  work,  and  he  now  owns  two  hun- 
dretl  and  thirty  acres  of  rich  and  valuable  land. 

On  the  ;oth  of  October,  iS^.^,  Mr.  Richards  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Lucy  Peet,  boni  May 
7.  1S04,  in  Benson,  Vt.,  the  eldest  daughter  of 
Wheelixrk  Peet,  of  Ben.son,  Rutland  County.  \'t. 
I'nto  tliem  wereboni  five  children;  Sarah  A.,  who 
died  agttl  eightetrn  years:  Louisa  C.  who  Ix-came 
the  wife  of  I'.  H.  lialcom,  and  died  leaving  one 
child,  Nellie  Balcom,  of  Downer's  Grove:  Josiah. 
who  carries  on  the  old  homestead,  and  is  engaged 
in  the  dairy  business;  Ella  F.  and  Ennna  C,  twins. 
The  fonner  is  the  wife  of  A.  L.  Palmer,  a  fanner 
operating  a  part  of  the  old  homestead,  and  they 
have  three  children:  Emma  L«jui.sa,  Alcy  May 
and  Spencer  R.  Emma  is  the  wife  of  W.  C.  Bartle, 
by  whom  she  has  two  daughters;  lilla  L.  and  Lucy 
Emma.  Mrs.  Lucy  Richards  died  Novemlx:r  20, 
1886,  honoretl  a!id  respected  by  all  who  knew 
her  for  her  strength  of  character.  She  was  a 
memlxrr  of  the  Congregational  Church,  and  her 
brother  and  uncle  were  niini.sters  of  that  church. 
Another  brother,  I.ester  Peet.  came  here  in  KS31, 
and  taught  the  first  schix>l  ever  taught  in  DuPage 
Ciiunty. 

Mr.  Richards  ca.sl  his  first  Presidential  vote  for 
John  y.  Adams.  After  a  time  he  left  the  Whig 
party  and  joined  the  Free-soil  party.  In  1856,  he 
Ijecame  identifietl  with  the  Republican  jwrty.  of 
which  he  is  a  stanch  advocate,  as  is  al.so  his  s  )n 
Josiah.  Btrth  havefille<l  town.ship  offices,  proving 
capable  and  worthy  officials.  For  a  numlK-r 
of  years  Mr.  Richards  has  iK-en  a  memlxrr  of  the 
Congregational  Church,  in  which  he  serx'es  as 
Deacon.  He  has  taken  an  active  jiart  in  religions 
work,  and  for  many  years  was  found  in  the  front 
rank  of  any  enterpri.sc  calculated  to  prove  of  pub- 


lic lienefit.  As  he  is  now  ninety  years  of  age,  he 
i-annot  do  as  much  as  in  former  years,  but  he  still 
maint.'iins  an  inten-st  in  the  work  of  public  in>- 
provement.  He  helinil  to  build  the  first  schixil- 
lumse.  and  has  ever  lieen  a  strong  advocate  of  tem 
j)erance.  He  is  i-sti-vine<l  alike  by  young  and  old. 
rich  and  jHxtr.  and  the  lii.story  <>f  tlieii>uiit\  would 
be  incomplete  without  his  sketch 


<""^~>'s- 


-SJ 


I  VMAN  C.  IIHMENW.W,  .M.  D..  a  well 
I  C  known  physician  and  surgeon  of  Blouming- 
|_2f  dale,  claims  DuPage  County  as  the  place  of 
his  nativity.  He  was  U>rii  in  Wayne  Township 
in  Decemlier,  1852.  and  is  one  of  a  family  of  eight 
children,  five  sons  and  three  daughters.  His  par- 
ents were  Henrj-  B.  and  liunii-e  1  Guild;  Hemen- 
way.  the  fonner  a  native  of  Ma.s.sachusetts.  and  the 
latter  of  Vermont. 

In  the  fall  of  1.S36.  they  emigrated  westward, 
locating  in  DuPage  County,  and  Mr.  Henienway 
openetl  up  a  farm  in  Wayne  Township,  ufion 
which  he  reared  his  family.  In  1S71,  he  .si)ld  out 
and  removed  to  Sycamore,  De  Kalb  County,  where 
he  spent  the  last  years  of  his  life,  i>as.sii)g  away  in 
1887,  at  the  advantx-d  age  of  seventy-four  years. 
His  wife  sur\ived  him  for  a  few  years,  and  was 
called  to  the  home  iK-yond  in  1S81.  He  served 
during  the  late  war  as  a  member  of  the  Twelfth  Illi- 
nois Cavalry,  and  was  capture<l  with  his  regiment 
at  Harper's  Ferry,  but  after  a  short  time  was  pa- 
roled. Later,  he  was  dischargetl  on  account  of 
physical  di.sability.  The  memlK-rs  of  the  Henien- 
way family  were  I^dwin,  now  decea.sed:  Dwight, 
a  fniit-dealcrof  California;  George  W..  whoser\ed 
for  nearly  three  years  as  a  memlier  of  the  Thirty- 
sixth  Illinois  Infantry  during  the  late  war.  and 
is  now  a  merchant  and  Postma.ster  of  Winters, 
Cal.;  Ellen,  wife  of  Charles  Stevenson,  of  Syca- 
more, Ill.;Elina.  wife  of  James  A.  Congleton,  of 
Wheaton;  Eli/.al)etli,  who  is  the  widow  of  Walter 
Scott,  and  resides  in  Chicago;  Lyman  G.,  of  this 
sketch:  and  William,  of  Chii-ago. 

The  Dt)c-tor  was  reared  under  the  parental  roof, 
and  acquired  his  literary-  education  in  the  schools 


194 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


of  Wayne  Township  and  in  the  Sycamore  High 
School.  Wishing  to  enter  upon  a  professional 
career,  he  read  medicine  with  Dr.  George  W. 
Nesbitt,  one  of  the  leading  physicians  of  the 
county,  and  took  his  first  course  of  lectures  at 
Bennett  Medical  College,  of  Chicago,  in  1875-76. 
After  completing  the  regular  course,  he  was  grad- 


uated in  the  Cla.ss  of 


/  /• 


He  then   returned  to 


Sycamore  and  joined  his  former  preceptor  in  one 
year's  practice.  Later,  he  engaged  in  practice  for 
several  years  in  Turner,  111. 

Dr.  Hemenway  was  married  in  Turner  to  Miss 
May,  youngest  daughter  of  Dr.  W.  J.  Wilson. 
She  was  there  educated,  was  a  graduate  of  the 
High  School, and  successfully  engaged  in  teaching 
in  the  High  School  previous  to  her  marriage. 
Their  union  was  celebrated  July  26,  1881.  They 
removed  to  Hampshire,  Kane  Count}",  where  the 
Doctor  continued  practice  for  seven  years,  when, 
in  1 89 1,  he  came  to  Bloomingdale  and  bought  out 
the  practice  of  Dr.  Vanderhoof  now  of  Wheaton. 
He  has  a  large  and  con.stantly  increasing  practice, 
and  is  recognized  as  one  of  the  successful  pliy.si- 
cians  of  the  county.  He  keeps  abreast  with  the 
science,  and  his  marked  skill  and  ability  have  won 
him  a  liberal  patronage.  In  politics,  the  Doctor 
has  been  a  stanch  Republican  since  casting  his 
first  Presidential  vote  for  Rutherford  B.  Hayes  in 
1876.  His  wife  is  a  member  of  the  Congrega- 
tional Church,  and  the  Doctor  contributes  liberally 
to  its  support.  He  holds  membership  with  the 
Modern  Woodmen  of  America.  This  worthy 
couple  ha^'e  the  respect  and  esteem  of  all  who 
know  them,  and  it  is  with  pleasure  that  we  pre- 
sent to  our  readers  this  record  of  their  lives. 


-^). 


^f^ 


r=i 


[=" 


0R.  WILLIAM  J.  WILSON,  who  is  now  en- 
gaged in  the  insurance  business  in  Turner, 
having  retired  from  the  practice  of  the  med- 
ical profession,  was  born  in  the  township  of  Gro- 
ton,  Tomkins  County,  N.  Y.,  March  2,  18  17.  His 
father,  John  Wilson,  is  a  native  of  Ireland,  and 
came  with  his  parents  to  America  when  seven 
years  of  age,  locating  in  Massachusetts,  where  he 


met  and  married  Miss  Wolcott,  a  native  of  the 
Bay  State.  They  became  parents  of  sixteen  chil- 
dren, eight  sons  and  eight  daughters,  twelve  of 
whom  grew  to  manhood  and  womanhood.  The 
father  of  this  famih-  became  a  farmer  of  New  York, 
and  there  died  in  1833,  at  the  age  of  sixty-six 
years.  His  wife  long  .survived  him ,  but  has  now- 
passed  away.  They  were  members  of  the  Pres- 
byterian Church,  and  he  served  as  a  Deacon  for 
some  years. 

The  Doctor  spent  his  boyhood  and  youth  in 
Tomkins  and  Cortland  Counties,  N.  Y.,  and  there 
acquired  his  early  education.  He  remained  on  the 
home  farm  until  he  had  attained  his  majority, 
and  then,  wishing  to  enter  a  professional  career, 
began  the  study  of  medicine  in  the  Geneva  Med- 
ical College,  from  which  institution  he  was  grad- 
uated in  1 84 1.  He  then  began  practice  in  the 
village  of  Cortland,  where  he  remained  for  fifteen 
years,  when  he  determined  to  try  his  fortune  on 
the  broad  prairies  of  the  West.  Bidding  good- 
bye to  his  old  home,  he  emigrated  to  Illinois  in 
1854,  locating  at  Crystal  Lake,  McHenry  Coun-, 
ty,  where  he  practiced  for  about  five  years.  Since 
1S59  he  has  been  a  resident  of  Turner,  and  dur- 
ing nuich  of  this  time  he  has  carried  on  agricul- 
tural pursuits,  and  engaged  in  the  insurance  bus- 
iness. For  a  time  he  owned  one  hundred  and 
fifteen  acres  of  land  a  mile  west  of  Turner,  but 
dispo.sed  of  this  property  in  1868. 

On  the  22d  of  December,  1840,  Mr.  Wilson 
married  Miss  Hulda  M.  Carnes,  daughter  of  Ste- 
phen and  Martha  (Prentiss)  Carnes,  the  former 
a  native  of  the  Emerald  Isle,  and  the  latter  of 
Vermont.  Mrs.  Wilson  was  born  in  Homer,  N. 
Y. ,  November  27,  1822.  Six  children  were  born 
unto  our  subject  and  his  wife,  four  sons  and  two 
daughters.  Frank,  who  married  Miss  Alice  Sar- 
gent, of  Turner,  by  whom  he  has  three  daugh- 
ters, Grace,  Fannie  and  Alice;  Dwight,  who  mar- 
ried Mi.ss  Mary  Chaplin,  by  whom  he  has  two 
.sons,  Coleman  and  Harn,-;  Elliott,  deceased:  Lil- 
lian, wife  of  Morris  Town,  of  Sycamore,  by  whom 
she  has  a  daughter,  Susan:  Willie,  deceased;  and 
May,  wife  of  Dr.  L.  G.  Hemenway.  The  lat- 
ter reside  in  Bloomingdale,  and  their  children  are 
Willie,  Gertrude,  Grace,  Percv  and  Blanche. 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


'95 


In  politics.  Dr.  Wil.son  is  a  stanch  Republican, 
and  for  many  years  he  has sened  as  Xotan-  Pub- 
lic. He  now  owns  a  good  home  and  other  prop- 
erty- in  Turner.  He  is  a  prominent  and  influen- 
tial man.  highly  esteemed  throughout  the  com- 
munity for  his  many  excellencies  of  character. 
Himself  and  wife  are  members  of  the  Congrega- 
tional Church,  in  which  he  served  as  Deacon  and 
Trustee  for  many  years.  In  1S90.  this  worthy 
couple  celebrated  their  golden  wedding,  having 
traveled  life's  journey  together  for  half  a  centur>. 
It  is  with  pleasure  that  we  present  to  our  readers 
this  sketch  of  the  Doctor  and  his  wife,  who  are  so 
widely  and  favorably  known  throughout  DuPage 
Countv. 


HENRY  EGGERS.  who  for  the  past  twenty 
Nears  has  been  engaged  in  the  blacksmith 
business  in  Wheaton.  is  a  native  of  Ger- 
many, bom  near  Bremen.  His  father,  Henr>- 
Eggers,  St..  was  a  small  fanner  and  nurser\-man, 
but  is  now  li\4ng  a  retired  life.  The  mother  of 
our  subject,  who  bore  the  maiden  name  of  Gathia 
Behems,  die<i  at  the  age  of  fifty -one  years.  In 
the  family  were,nine  children  :  Herman;  Trina: 
Henr>-.  who  died  in  infanc>-;  Henr>-,  of  this 
sketch:  Hannah:  John:  Martha  and  Dederich. 
Frederick  came  to  America,  and  died  at  the  age 
of  sixteen  years.  Herman  is  now  living  in  Chi- 
cago. Trina  is  the  wife  of  Fritz  Surkamer,  of 
Glen  Ellyn.  Hannah  is  the  wife  of  John  Wal 
lars,  of  Germany.  John.  Martha  and  Dederich 
all  live  in  the  Fatherland. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was  bom  Febniarj- 
20,  1852,  and  in  his  youth  attended  the  schools 
of  his  native  land.  While  in  Germany,  he  also 
worked  as  a  gardener  and  nurserjman.  He  was 
a  young  man  of  sixteen  years  when,  in  1868.  ac- 
companied by  his  brother  Herman,  he  came  to 
America,  sailing  from  Bremen  in  April  of  that 
year.  On  the  7th  of  June  he  reached  Chicago, 
and  embarked  in  business  in  that  city  as  a  market 
gardener,  near  the  stock  yards.  He  afterwards 
obtained  emplo>-ment  with  the  firm  of  Boughton 


Bros.,  moulders  and  machiui.sts.  with  whom 
he  remained  eight  months,  when  he  went  to 
Downer's  Grove,  and  worked  on  a  fami  for  nine 
months.  On  the  expiration  of  that  period  he 
came  to  Wheaton,  and  took  up  the  blacksmith's 
trade,  which  he  learned  under  the  direction  of 
August  Michels,  with  whom  he  remained  three 
years.  He  then  was  employed  for  one  year  by 
Vincent  Smith,  of  Wayne,  after  which  he  began 
business  in  his  own  interest,  continuing  at  that 
place  for  seven  years,  when  he  sold  his  shop,  and 
returned  to  Wheaton  and  established  his  present 
business.  While  at  Wayne  much  of  Mr.  Eggers' 
work  consisted  in  shoeing  horses  for  M.  W.  Dun- 
ham, the  celebrated  importer  and  breeder  of  Nor- 
man horses. 

Mr.  Eggers  was  united  in  marriage  in  Whea- 
ton, on  Augu.st  16,  1874.  to  Miss  Rike  Peter,  a 
native  of  Germany.  Their  union  has  been  blessed 
with  seven  children:  Albert,  who  died  in  infancy: 
George,  who  is  clerking  in  the  drug  store  of  L.  L. 
Hiatt:  Henr>-:  Helen:  Nettie:  Stella  and  Florence. 

Mr.  Eggers  is  now  a  member  of  the  firm  of 
Eggers  &  Rennpage.  his  partner  being  Henn,- 
Rennpage.  They  do  an  extensive  business  in 
plow  work,  horse-shoeing,  wagon-making  and 
general  repairing.  Our  subject  is  an  industrious 
man,  a  good  mechanic,  and  has  built  up  an  e.\- 
tensive  trade  in  his  line.  He  has  also  thereby 
secured  a  comfortable  home  in  Wheaton,  where 
he  is  well  known  and  highly  regarded  as  a  man 
of  strict  integrity  and  .sterling  worth.  In  poli 
tics,  he  is  a  supporter  of  Republican  principles. 
Although  of  German  birth,  America  has  no  truer 
citizen  in  principle  than  our  subject,  who  loves 
the  land  of  his  adoption .  and  is  a  firm  defendei  of 
its  free  institutions. 


=*=l^-r^i 


HH.  KORTH  ANER  is  one  of  the  most  prom- 
inent citizens  of  Bensenville,  and  is  Presi- 
dent of  the  village.  Its  social.  iK)Iitical  and 
business  interests  find  in  him  a  worthy  reprcsen 
tative,  and  he  is  now  proprietor  of  a  hardware  ana 
agricultural-implement     establishment.      He  has 


196 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


the  honor  of  being  a  nativ^e  of  this  countj-,  for  his 
birth  occurred  in  Addison  Township,  on  May  28, 
1852.  His  father,  Henn-  Korthaner,  was  a  native 
of  Meitze,  province  of  Hanover,  Germany,  and  in 
1839,  when  a  youth  of  sixteen  years,  crossed  the 
Atlantic  to  America.  He  landed  in  New  York 
City,  and  thence  came  to  DuPage  County,  where 
he  spent  the  remainder  of  his  life.  His  death  oc- 
curred in  Addison  Township,  in  1889.  He  mar- 
ried Maria  Kirchhoff,  who  was  born  in  Bissen- 
dorf,  province  of  Hanover,  Germany,  and  when 
only  four  years  old  was  brought  by  her  parents  to 
this  country.     She  died  .some  eighteen  years  ago. 

Our  subject  is  the  eldest  of  their  three  children. 
In  the  district  school  he  began  his  education, 
which  was  supplemented  bj'  study  in  the  Acad- 
emy at  Arlington  Heights, in  Wheaton,  and  in  the 
schools  of  Chicago.  Later  he  engaged  in  the 
nursery  business  and  in  farming.  He  carried  on 
the  dual  occupation  in  Addison  Town.ship  from 
1868  until  1 88 1,  when  he  established  him.self  in 
his  present  line  of  busines.s  in  Bensenville.  He 
carries  a  good  stock  of  hardware  and  agricultural 
implements,  and  from  the  village  and  surrounding 
country  recei\-es  a  liberal  patronage.  From  the 
beginning  his  trade  has  constantly  increased,  until 
it  has  now  assumed  extensive  proportions  for  a 
place  of  this  .size. 

Turning  from  the  business  to  the  pfivate  life  of 
Mr.  Korthaner  we  find  that  in  May,  1877,  was 
celebrated  his  marriage  with  Miss  Emma  Heuer, 
a  native  of  Addison  Township.  She  died  in  1887, 
leaving  three  children,  a  daughter  and  two  .sons, 
Mary  A.,  Freddie  H.  and  Edward  A.  In  1891, 
Mr.  Korthaner  was  again  married,  his  second 
union  being  with  Celia  Henig,  who  was  born  in 
Germain-,  and  there  remained  until  sixteen  years 
of  age.  The  family  has  a  pleasant  home  in  Ben- 
senville, and  its  members  are  widely  and  favora- 
bly known. 

In  connection  with  his  other  interests,  Mr. 
Korthaner  has  a  farm  of  sevent}--five  acres,  which 
he  rents.  He  has  led  a  bu.sy  life,  yet  has  found 
time  to  serve  his  fellow-townsmen  in  official  posi- 
tions. He  is  a  supporter  of  the  Republican  party, 
and  by  it  was  elected  President  of  the  Village 
Board,  which  position  he  is  now  filling  in  an  able 


manner,  with  credit  to  himself  and  satisfaction  to 
his  constituents.  He  is  also  serving  as  Police  Mag- 
istrate. Mr.  Korthaner,  who  is  now  in  the  prime 
of  life,  is  possessed  of  energy  and  enterprise,  is 
public-spirited  and  progressi\'e,  and  well  deserves 
the  position  of  prominence  which  he  occupies 
among  his  fellow-townsmen.  He  is  alive  to  the 
best  interests  of  Bensenville,  and  does  all  in  his 
power  for  its  upbuilding  and  advancement. 


HENRY  A.  HEUER  devotes  his  time  and  at- 
tention to  agricultural  pursuits  on  section 
15,  Addison  Township,  where  he  has  a  farm 
of  one  hundred  and  eighty-five  acres  of  rich  land, 
the  greater  part  of  which  is  under  a  high  state  of 
cultivation,  and  well  improved  with  all  the  ac- 
cessories of  a  model  farm.  In  connection  with 
general  farming  he  also  carries  on  stock-raising, 
and  keeps  on  hand  a  good  grade  of  horses  and 
cattle.  A  beautiful  residence,  which  was  erected 
by  Mr.  Heuer  at  a  cost  of  $3,000,  adorns  the 
place.  A  large  barn  has  aLso  been  built  and  other 
outbuildings.  The  well-tilled  fields  and  neat  ap- 
pearance of  the  place  indicate  the  owner  to  be  a 
man  of  thrift  and  enterpri.se. 

Mr.  Heuer  was  born  in  Germanv,  September 
18,  1845,  and  is  a  son  of  William  Heuer,  a  native 
of  the  same  country.  The  father  was  born  in 
October,  1809,  and  in  1847,  emigrating  to  Amer- 
ica, took  up  his  residence  in  DuPuge  County,  111., 
but  he  was  not  long  permitted  to  enjoj-  his  new 
home,  for  his  death  occurred  the  same  year.  He 
was  then  fifty-three  years  of  age.  His  wife,  So- 
phia, was  born  in  Germany  in  18 14,  and  died  in 
1886. 

Our  .subject  is  the  fifth  in  order  of  birth  in  a 
family  of  six  children.  He  was  only  two  years  old 
when  the  family  left  the  Fatherland  and  sought 
a  home  in  the  New  World.  The  district  .schools 
afforded  him  his  educational  privileges,  and  un- 
der the  parental  roof  he  was  reared  to  manhood. 
He  became  familiar  with  farm  life  in  all  its  de- 
tails, being  early  inured  to  the  arduous  labors  of 
the  fields.     It  was  in  the  year  187 1   that  he  was 


PORTRAIT  AX!'  1U<  K'.RAritlCAI.    RI-CnRlj. 


uiiitcii  III  iii.irn.i>;c  with  Mix-n  1.(Hii--.i  kiii-^-.  uni- 
of  the  fair  <la»nhUrs  <il  l)ul'aj;i-  County.  Six 
chiUlren  have  l)een  boni  of  their  uni<iii.  and  the 
family  circle  yet  remains  nnhrokcii  by  the  hand 
of  death.  They  are  as  follows  Martha.  Otto. 
Hmma.  Clara,  Amanda  and  AllK-rt. 

The  Heuer  houM-hold  is  the  alMnlc  oi    imsjuial 
ily.  with  the  latch  string  always  out,  and  our  sub- 
ject and  his  wife  have  a  lar^e  circle  of  friends  and   '■ 
acnuaintaiKx-s   throunhont  the  c«>inmunity  where 
for  many  \  ears  they  have  made  their  home.       Mr. 
Heuer  holds  meml>ership  with  the    KvaiiKelical 
Church.  an<l  in  jMilitics  is  a  supporter  of  the   Re- 
puhlicim  party,    hut   he   has  never  s«mglit  or  de- 
sire<l  the  honors  or  emoluments  of  public  office, 
preferring;  to  devote  his  entire  lime  and  attention 
to  his  business  interests.      For  forty -six   years  he 
h;is  liveil  in   DuPage  County,  has  witnes.sed  the   ! 
greater  jxirt    of  its  srowlh   and  u]>b»iilding.  and 
well  deserves   mention   amonj;    its   honore<l  early 
settlers. 


h^-i^ 


cs_ 


=«^^-*-fS^^=a= 


EH  A  R I ,  KS  J  K  N  K I N  S  is  a  prom  i  nent  fa  nner 
■  >f  Naper\ille  Township,  residing  on  section 
1*1.  where  he  owns  and  oix-rates  two  hun- 
drctl  and  twenty  acres  of  valual>le  land.  His 
lands  are  well  tilled,  his  fences  well  kejJt,  and 
many  improvements  upon  the  place  add  both  to 
its  value  and  attra«.-tive  appearance.  There  are 
two  good  residences,  together  with  the  necessary- 
outbuildings,  and  the  other  acces.sories  of  a  mo<iel 
fann  are  not  wanting. 

The  owner  of  this  desirable  property  is  a  native 
of  the  Empire  State.  He  was  l>orn  in  Allegany 
County  on  the  9th  of  July.  1X26.  anil  is  a  s<»n  of 
William  and  Folly  (  Millet )  Jenkins,  who  were 
aLs*i  natives  of  New  York.  The  father  was  a 
fanner  by  <xx-upation,  and  was  of  Ivngli>h  descent. 
The  nmther  was  a  daughter  «)f  Samuel  and  Rachel 
I  Douglas)  Millet.  Samuel  Millet  was  also  of 
English  lineage,  but  his  wife  was  of  Scotch  de- 
scent, and  a  relative  of  Stephen  A.  Douglas.  In 
1853  William  Jenkins  remove<l  with  his  family 
from   New  York  to  Jo  Da vievs  County.  111.,  and 


.lIUI     iillii-    \t.ii--  went  to  Kani    v.i'iilu\  .    m  1  m- 

family  numlx-re«l  fourteen  children,  of  whom 
twelve  grew  to  manhixxl  and  womanhiHKl.  while 
nine  are  still  li\ing. 

The  subjc-ct  of  this  sketch  is  the  third  in  order 
of  birth.  He  remained  in  the  State  of  his  nativ- 
ity until  eightet-u  years  of  age,  ami  tJien  came  to 
DuPagc  Count> ,  in  1S44.  when  he  Itegan  work- 
ing by  the  month  as  a  fanu  hand.  He  was  thus 
emploNed  until  1X50,  when,  attracte<l  by  thedi.s- 
covery  of  gold  in  California,  he  cr<»s.se<l  the  plains 
to  the  Pacific  SIojk.*  with  a  horse-team,  making 
the  jouniey  by  way  of  Salt  I.akeCity.-  At  length 
he  arrived  in  Hangtown,  now  l'l.icer\ille,  where 
he  engageti  in  mining  for  alMJUt  three  years.  He 
made  the  return  trip  by  water,  coming  by  way 
of  Ora>lown  an<l  New  York  City  to  Na()er\ille. 
Here  he  embarked  in  farming  ui>on  rented  land, 
and  as  soon  as  able  he  purchasetl  the  farm  which 
he  had  rented,  on  which  he  now  resides,  and  which 
was  formerly  owned  by  his  father-in-law.  Thomas 
Thatcher. 

On  the  17th  of  May,  1X52,  was  celebrated  the 
marriage  of  Mr.  Jenkins  and  Miss  Harriet  H. 
Thatcher,  a  native  of  Wayne  County.  N.  Y., 
born  April  12,  1.S29,  and  a  daughter  of  Thomxs 
and  Roxanna  ( Look  i  Thatcher.  She  died  on  the 
.^oth  of  April,  1885,  leaving  three  children;  Kd 
waril  C,  born  l)cceinl)er  i_\.  1854:  Myron  M.. 
July  26,  1857;  and  Lyman,  August  17,  1859. 

Mr.  Jenkins  is  a  supjuirters  of  the  Republican 
party  ami  its  j)rinci|)les.  and  has  Imx-u  elected  to 
various  official  positions.  He  has  held  the  office 
of  Township  Tnistee,  was  School  Director  for 
many  years,  .serve*!  as  Road  Commis.sioner,  and 
was  elected  Super\'isor  of  Naper\'ille  Township 
in  1858,  again  in  1863,  1864,  i86«,  1872  and 
1873.  No  higher  testimonial  to  his  Fidelity  could 
lie  given  than  his  repeate<l  re-elei'lii>ns.  Mr. 
Jenkins  takes  an  active  interest  in  everything 
|K-rtaining  to  the  welfare  of  the  community  and 
its  educational,  moral  and  social  adxaiKx-ment. 
He  is  a  representative  fanner,  ami  his  business 
ability  au<l  good  management  have  won  him  u 
comfortable  home  and  handsome  com]ieteiKX-.  He 
has  traveled  from  the  eastern  to  the  western  shore 
of  this  continent,    and   made  a  voyage  from  San 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


Francisco  to  New  York.  Such  experiences 
broaden  one's  ideas,  and  Mr.  Jenkins  is  a  liberal- 
minded  man,  who  well  deserves  the  high  regard 
in  which  he  is  held. 


-^. 


^^^[ 


["rEDERICK  LONG  is  engaged  in  the 
JM  furniture  business  and  undertaking  in  Na- 
I  '  perville.  He  also  has  other  business  inter- 
ests, being  the  chief  stockholder  in  a  lounge  man- 
ufactory. He  is  prominent  in  business  and  social 
circles,  and  is  recognized  as  one  of  the  leading  and 
influential  citizens  of  the  community.  Mr.  Long 
is  of  German  birth.  He  was  born  in  Britenburg, 
Germany,  December  15,  1837,  and  is  a  son  of 
Jacob  and  Elizabeth  ( Xander)  Long,  who  were 
also  natives  of  that  cpuntry  and  there  spent  their 
entire  lives.  They  were  farming  people,  and  the 
father  passed  away  at  the  age  of  fifty-seven  years, 
while  his  wife  reached  the  allotted  age  of  three- 
score years  and  ten. 

Frederick  is  the  second  in  their  family  of  five 
children,  three  sons  and  two  daughters.  He  re- 
niained  upon  the  home  farm  until  sixteen  years 
of  age,  when,  with  two  neighbor  boys,  he  bade 
adieu  to  home  and  native  land  and  crossed  the 
broad  Atlantic  to  America,  where  he  had  deter- 
mined to  .seek  his  fortune.  The  voyage  was 
made  on  a  .sailing-vessel,  which,  after  forty-one 
days  spent  upon  the  briny  deep,  dropped  anchor 
in  the  harbor  of  New  York.  Mr.  Long  at  once 
made  his  way  to  Cook  County,  111.,  where  he 
worked  on  a  farm  b>-  the  month,  and  afterwards 
came  to  this  county,  being  similarly  employed  in 
Downer's  Grove  Township  for  a  year.  He  then 
began  learning  the  cabinet-maker's  trade,  at 
which  he  worked  for  five  years,  and  on  the  ex- 
piration of  that  period  he  opened  a  small  furniture 
.store  in  Naper\-ille,  which  he  has  conducted  suc- 
cessfully since,  increasing  his  .stock  as  his  in- 
creased patronage  demanded. 

On  the  28th  of  March,  1861,  Mr.  Long  was 
joined  in  marriage  with  Miss  Amelia  Beidleman, 
of  Napen'ille,  daughter  of  William  Beidleman. 
Their  entire  wedded  life  has  been  passed  in  this 


locality, where  they  have  a  wide  acquaintance  and 

are  favorably  known.  In  politics,  he  is  a  Prohi- 
bitionist, supporting  the  party  which  embodies 
his  views  on  the  temperance  question.  He  be- 
longs to  the  Evangelical  Church.  In  1886,  he 
began  to  do  a  wholesale  business  as  a  manufac- 
turer of  lounges,  and  has  since  carried  on  opera- 
tions along  this  line.  In  the  spring  of  1893,  the 
business  was  incorporated,  but  Mr.  Long  still 
owns  the  greater  part  of  the  stock.  This  is  a 
large  concern,  and  the  company  enjo^'s  an  exten- 
sive trade.  The  retail  bu.siness  of  Mr.  Long  has 
also  steadily  increa.sed  from  the  beginning,  and 
yields  to  him  a  good  income.  While  learning  his 
trade,  he  worked  three  years  for  $75.  He  com- 
menced at  the  ver^-  lowest  round  of  the  ladder, 
but  has  .steadily  risen  step  by  step.  His  .success 
is  certainly  well  merited,  for  it  is  the  reward  of  his 
own  labors. 


c=1 


^+^ 


rrj 


[=~ 


NENRY  HEIDORN,  one  of  the  successful  and 
representative  farmers  of  Addison  Township, 
DuPage  County,  residing  on  section  3,  is  of 
German  birth.  He  was  born  in  Schwerin,  prov- 
ince of  Hanover,  Germany,  on  the  loth  of  Febru- 
ary', 1849,  and  is  a  son  of  Henry  and  Mary  (Bier- 
mann)  Heidorn,  who  were  also  natives  of  the 
same  locality.  They  never  left  Germany,  but  con- 
tinued there  to  reside  until  called  to  the  home  be- 
yond. The  mother  died  at  the  age  of  fifty-eight 
years,  and  the  father  pa.ssed  away  in  his  seventy- 
eighth  year. 

Our  subject  is  the  youngest  in  a  family  of  seven 
children,  and  is  the  only  son  who  reached  man- 
hood. No  event  of  special  importance  occurred 
during  his  boyhood  and  youth.  He  remained  in 
Germany  with  his  parents  until  eighteen  years  of 
age,  when  he  determined  to  seek  a  home  beyond 
the  Atlantic,  for  he  had  read  and  heard  much  of 
the  privileges  and  opportunities  afforded  in  this 
country-.  Crossing  the  briny  deep  in  1867,  he 
made  his  way  first  to  Cook  County,  111.,  where  he 
engaged  in  farming  by  the  month. 

In  1870,  Mr.  Heidorn  was  united   in  marriage 


I'ORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL    KI-CORD. 


'99 


ill  I)iil'aj;t.-  Couiitv  with  Miss  Adelheid  I.uehrs.  a 
native  of  Ofmiany.  who  came  to  this  county  in 
her  chiKlhcxxl  with  her  parents.  Di(?drich  and 
A'lelheid  (AUjersi  I.iiehrs.  The>  bi-jjan  their 
domestic  hfe  ujxmj  the  t'anii  where  they  liave  Miice 
resided,  and  their  home  has  l>et:n  Messctl  by  the 
presence  of  finir  children,  namely:  Herman. 
Eniest.  Henry  ami  Mary.  They  alsoU»st  one  son, 
Fretl,  the  secoiul  in  order  of  birth. 

Mr.  Heidoni  has  l)et?ii  very  successful  in  his  luisi • 
ness  carevr.  and  is  now  the  owner  of  two  hundred 
and  eighty  acres  of  land,  divided  into  three  farms: 
two  of  them,  one  of  one  hundred  and  ten  acres  and 
the  other  ctmiprising  eighty  acres  on  sections  .^  and 
ID  of  Addison  Township:  and  the  remainder  an 
eighty -acre  fann  and  ten  acres  of  wotxlland  in 
Klk  drove  Township,  Cook  County.  Thes.-  farms 
yield  to  him  a  goixl  income,  for  all  are  under  a 
high  state  of  cultivation. 

Ill  p  iliiics  he  is  a  Republican  and  has  supported 
that  party,  with  a  few  exceptions,  since  becoming 
an  American  citizen.  He  is  now  serx'ing  as 
Schtxjl  Clerk  ami  Director.  In  1890,  he  was 
elected  As.ses.sor  of  his  township,  and  is  still  dis- 
charging the  duties  of  that  office  with  credit  to 
himself  and  to  the  satisfaction  of  his  constituents. 
He  belongs  to  the  Lutheran  Church  and  is  nQw 
serving  as  one  of  its  officers.  The  expectations 
which  led  him  to  seek  a  home  in  America  have 
been  more  than  realized,  yet  his  prosperity  is  not 
only  the  result  of  good  fortune  but  is  the  outctnue 
of  earnest  labor. 


l^-^l 


0.WI1)  WARD,  a  retired  fariiiiT  ri-i<iii;g  in 
Turner,  was  Ixini  on  the  ist  of  Sci)ltmlH.-r. 
^26,  in  Rothwell.  near  Leeds,  Kngland. 
i  iu-  (latemal  grandfather  was  a  native  of  the 
same  place,  and  reareil  a  large  family  I'f  children, 
among  whom  was  Kelighta  Ward,  who  was  the 
father  of  our  subject.  After  arriving  at  years  of 
maturity,  he  married  Ann  Homer,  and  they  lie- 
came  the  parents  of  nine  children,  but  David  is 
the  cmly  one  now  living.  The  father  was  a  coal 
miner,  and  died  iu  hi.s  native  land  in  1M55.  at  the 


age  of  fifty- mm.-  \  ears,      in  issj.  his  wiu- passed 
away,  having    reaiheil  the  ri|ic  old  a,;c  of  ciglitv 
six  years. 

Mr.  Ward  whose  iiaiiie  lua'K  iln^  skculi  i>  a 
self-made  inaii.  who  from  carls  life  has  U-eii  dc 
I>endent  u|>on  his  own  resources.  At  the  age  of 
nine  he  )*egan  mining,  and  followe<l  that  pursuit 
f<jr  thirteen  years.  He  obtained  but  a  limite<i 
education,  an<l  that  he  secure*!  by  attending 
school  at  night.  Choosing  as  a  coin|>anion  and 
heljjmate  on  life' >  journey  Miss  Ann  Harljer,  they 
were  married  on  the  iSth  of  Februar>  ,  1H49.  The 
lad\  is  a  daughter  of  James  and  Sarah-'  Wolford  1 
Harlnrr.  Wishing  to  seek  a  home  licyond  the 
Atlantic,  Mr.  Ward  cros.se<l  the  briny  deep  in 
1S49.  and  on  landing  on  the  shores  of  the  New 
World  came  direct  to  Winfield  Township.  Du- 
Page  County.  Four  years  later,  he  bought  a 
farm  of  sixty  acres,  three  and  a-half  miles  from 
Turner,  which  he  improved,  and  to  which  he 
added  eighty  acres.  He  afterward  sold,  and  pur- 
cha.sed  another  fann  of  one  hundred  and  twenty- 
nine  acres,  a  mile  and  a-quarter  ea.st  of  Turner, 
upon  which  he  resided  for  twenty  years,  devoting 
his  lime  and  attention  to  its  further  development 
and  cultivation.  He  made  the  place  one  of  the 
l)est  farms  of  the  cimnty,  and  its  neat  and  thrifty 
appearance  indicates  the  careful  supervision  of 
the  owner. 

Ill  March,  1893.  Mr.  Ward  laid  aside  his  bitsi 
ness  cares  and  came  to  Turner,  where  he  is  now 
living  retiretl.  in  the  enjoyment  of  a  well-eanietl 
rest.  He  still  retains  his  farm,  however.  Ixrsides 
having  several  gtxnl  resiliences  in  this  platv.  and 
two  huiidre<l  and  forty  acres  of  land  near  Trac>  . 
Minn.  For  his  .success  in  life  Mr.  Ward  certainly 
deserves  much  iTeiiil.  With  no  advantages  to 
aid  him.  he  sUirteil  out  empty  hande*!.  \et  stead- 
ily worked  hLs  way  upward,  step  b\  step,  to  a 
])osition  of  wealth  and  affluence.  Tli'  '  Ii-s 
in   his  path    he    overcame  by    perse\<  ,iid 

diligence,  and  pros|>erity  at  length  rewardei!  his 
efforts 

I'nto  Mr  and  Mrs.  Ward  were  Uirn  nine 
children,  five  sons  and  four  daughters.  Joseph 
A.  the  eldest,  marrieil  Miss  Celia  H"l»soii.  and 
they    have   six    children:     Frcil     Iv      Maud   J  . 


200 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


Cora,  Arthur,  Clara  and  Robert.  Annie  is  the 
wife  of  H.  S.  Gladding,  and  they  have  five  chil- 
ren:  Josephine,  Rhoda.  WiUis.  John  -and  Flora. 
William  wedded  Miss  Emma  Peltou.  and  with 
their  three  children,  Mar\-  E..  Grace  and  George 
D.,  they  make  their  home  in  Belvidere.  Mar>-  is 
the  wife  of  Charles  Roundy,  and  unto  them  have 
been  born  two  children:  Delbert  andErma.  Ellen 
died  at  the  age  of  six  years.  John  L.  married 
Sarah  Hanney,  and  their  children  are  Beatrice, 
Edward.  Herbert  and  Helen.  George  A..  Ella 
(who  in  September.  1893,  married  George  Phil- 
lips, of  Turner),  and  Charles  D.  complete  the 
family,  which  is  one  widely  and  favorably  known 
in  this  locality. 


-=1^-*^^ 


HENRY  F.  BUCHHOLZ.  who  is  now  pro- 
prietor of  the  Addison  Hotel,  of  Addison, 
111.,  was  bom  in  the  township  of  that  name 
on  the  2d  of  Jauuan,-,  1849,  and  is  a  representa- 
tive of  a  worthy  pioneer  famih'.  His  father, 
Henn,'  Buchholz,  was  bom  in  Hanover.  Germany, 
and  when  a  young  man  crossed  the  Atlantic  and 
came  to  DuPage  Count},-,  in  1844.  Here  he  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Mar>-  Rathije.  also  a  na- 
tive of  Hanover,  who  in  her  early  girlhood  came 
to  the  United  States.  Four  children  were  bora 
to  them,  two  sons  and  two  daughters,  all  of  whom 
grew  to  mature  years.  The  father  died  at  the 
age  of  sixty-six  years,  but  the  mother  is  still  liv- 
ing, at  the  age  of  sixt>-one. 

The  .subject  of  this  sketch  was  reared  upon  his 
father's  farm,  and  aided  in  the  labors  of  the  field 
in  the  summer  months,  while  in  the  winter  sea- 
son he  attended  the  German  and  English  schools, 
thus  acquiring  a  good  education.  When  he  en- 
tered upon  his  business  career,  he  chose  mercan- 
tile pursuits,  and  for  a  year  and  a- half  was  a  dealer 
in  lumber,  coal  and  feed  in  Addison.  He  then 
resumed  farming,  and  for  eighteen  years  devoted 
his  energies  to  agricultural  pursuits.  Six  years 
of  that  time  he  filled  the  oflSce  of  Commissioner 
of  Highways.  He  took  great  pride  in  having 
one  of  the  best  developed  farms  in  the  count}-,  but 


in  1892  he  abandoned  that  pursuit  to  embark  in 
the  hotel  business. 

Mr.  Buchholz  was  married  in  1874.  the  lady  of 
his  choice  being  Miss  Louisa  Bouske.  a  native  of 

I  Addison  Township,  and  a  daughter  of  William 
Bouske.  who  was  bom  in  Hanover.  Germany, 
and  became  the  first  settler  in   DuPage  County. 

I   Six  daughters  were  born  of  their  union,  as  follows: 

Regina,  Emma,  Man-,  Martha,  Louisa  and  Anna. 

Mr.  Buchholz  is  one  of  the  Directors  of  the  Ad- 

j  dison  Mutual  Fire  Insurance  Compan>-.  He  ex- 
ercises his  right  of  franchise  in  support  of  the 
Democratic  parly-,  and  is  now  filling  the  office  of 
School  Trustee,  which  position  he  ha-s  occupied 
for  twelve  >ears.  He  and  his  family  hold  mem- 
bership with  the  Lutheran  Church.  In  connec- 
tion with  his  other  interests,  Mr.  Buchholz  owns 
a  fine  fann  of  two  hundred  and  twenty  acres.  It 
is  all  under  a  high  state  of  cultivation,  and  has 
upon  it  two  good  houses  and  bams.  It  is  now 
rented  and  yields  to  him  a  good  income.  He  also 
owns  property  in  Addison  and  Itasca.  His  hotel 
is  proving  a  paying  investment  and,  run  in  first- 
class  style,  is  recei\-ing  from  the  tra\-eling  public 
a  liberal  patronage.  Mr.  Buchholz  is  a  man  of 
genial  manner,  and  makes  a  popular  and  affable 
host. 

Gl  BEL  GRIFFITH  CHESSMAN,  the  head  of 
r  I  one  of  the  leading  industries  of  Itasca,  is 
/  I  recognized  as  one  of  its  prominent  and  in- 
fluential business  men.  He  is  engaged  in  the 
manufacture  of  butter-tubs,  and  is  proprietor  of  a 
flour  and  feed  mill.  A  native  of  New  Jersey,  he 
was  bom  in  Bridgeton  on  the  4th  of  March,  1832, 
and  is  a  sou  of  Will  C.  and  Lydia  (Griffith )  Chess- 
man, both  of  whom  were  also  natives  of  the  same 
State.  Her  parents  were  of  German  descent,  and 
the  Chessman  family  is  of  Welsh  origin.  In  his 
youth,  the  father  of  our  subject  learned  the  shoe- 
maker's trade,  which  he  followed  for  some  time, 
but  afterward  he  gave  his  attention  to  famiing. 
In  1852  he  emigrated  westward  to  Chicago,  and 
in  1855  came  to  DuPage  County,  locating  upon 
a  farm.     Here  he  followed  agricultural  pursuits 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RIXORD. 


20I 


uiroiiyliinu  I  ill  nni.iiiulerof  hisdays.  His  death 
occumtl  in  his  sovciitysixtli  year,  and  his  wife 
passwl  away  in  her  sixty-seventh  year.  They 
had  a  family  of  four  sons  and  twodannhters,  who 
grew  to  jnanhiHid  and  wonianhiKKi. 

Abel  Griffith  ClRssnian  is  the  second  in  order 
of  birth.  The  days  of  his  lM)yho«xl  and  youth 
were  spent  in  his  native  SUite.  and  at  the  age  of 
twenty  years  he  acconipanietl  his  parents  on  their 
emigration  weslwanl.  He  had  previously  learned 
the  cariKiilers  trade,  and  after  his  arrival  in  Illi- 
nois followeil  that  oixntpation  in  Chicago  for  two 
years.  In  1.S55  he  came  with  the  family  to  I)n- 
Page  County,  and  in  1S57  he  was  united  in  mar- 
riage witb  Miss  Hliza  Brookline.  a  native  of  the 
Kmpire  State.  The  young  couple  Ix'gan  their 
domestic  life  upon  a  fann  in  Addison  Township, 
where  they  made  their  home  for  twenty  five  years, 
Mr.  Chessnjan  carr>  ing  on  the  cultivation  of  his 
land,  a:ul.  in  ct>iniection,  working  as  a  carpenter. 
He  drew  the  plans  and  specifications  for  a  num- 
lier  of  the  buildings  yet  standing  in  DuPage 
County,  including  the  schiHilhou.se.  In  1S73  he 
emlwrketl  in  his  present  business.  In  that  year 
the  railroad  was  built  through  Itasca,  and  believ- 
ing the  situation  an  advantageous  one,  he  l)egan 
operating  a  flour  and  feet!  mill,  and  commenced 
the  manufacture  of  butter-tubs.  He  has  built  up 
an  excellent  trade,  his  patronage  having  increased 
from  the  beginning.  He  also  owns  some  real  es- 
tate in  this  jilace. 

To  Mr.  ajid  Mrs.  Ches.smaii  have  been  Ixirn 
ten  children,  six  sons  and  four  daughters,  as  fol- 
lows: William.  Grant.  Joseph.  Walter.  Kolxjrt, 
George,  Ainia,  Carrie,  Phila  and  Kli/a.  The  fam- 
ily is  widely  known  in  the  community,  and  the 
Ches-sman  househ  'Id  is  the  alK)de  of  hi>spitality. 

Our  subject  was  instrumental  in  organizing 
Itasca,  and  has  l>een  one  of  its  most  prominent 
an<l  influential  citizens,  always  found  in  the  front 
rank  of  any  enteri>ri>e  calculated  to  enhance  its 
interests  and  aid  in  its  promotion.  In  p«>litics,  he 
is  a  Republican.  an<i  has  been  honore<l  with  vari 
ous  offices.  He  has  M.-rvetl  as  Trustee  of  his 
towiLship.  School  Director  of  his  district  for  thirty 
years,  and  is  now  serving  as  President  of  the  \'il 
lage  Board  of  Ita»«.a.      Public- spirite<l   and  pro 


gressi\'e,  he  may  well  Ik.-  c-alletl  the  founder  of 
this  place,  and  f<jr  the  part  which  he  has  tJiken  in 
its  upbuilding  he  ikser\es  great  cre<lit.  It  is 
with  i>leasure  that  we  jiresent  to  our  reader^  \h.'- 
re<.-ord  of  his  life  work. 

r~ki:i)i:klCK  .MIKIUXKKR,  who  carries  on 
1^  general  fanning  on  section  26,  Addison 
I  ^  Township,  has  known  no  other  home  than 
the  farm  on  which  he  now  resides.  Jt  was  his 
birthplace,  and  the  date  of  that  im])ortant  event 
is  December  S,  1S53.  His  father,  Henry  Ahr- 
becker,  was  l)oni  in  Germany,  but  during  his 
early  boyhcxxl  left  that  ctnintry  with  his  parents, 
crossed  the  Atlantic,  and  made  his  way  to  Illinois, 
the  family  locating  in  DuPage  County.  He  here 
grew  to  manluKKi,  and  after  arriving  at  years  of 
maturity  was  united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Caro- 
line Fischer,  a  sister  of  August  and  Fre<l  Fi.scher, 
sketches  of  whom  appear  elsewhere  in  this  work. 
She  is  still  living,  and  since  the  death  of  Mr. 
Ahrl)ecker  has  l)ecome  the  wife  of  Louis  Rathje, 
of  Addison. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  the  eldest  of  a 
family  of  four  brothers.  I'jxm  the  home  farm  the 
da>sofhis  boyhotKl  and  youth  were  pa.sse<l  in 
the  u.sual  manner  of  farmer  lads,  no  event  e»f 
special  importance  occurring.  During  the  sum 
iner  mouths,  he  aide<l  in  the  lalxirs  of  the  fields, 
and  in  the  winter  attende<l  the  public  sch<x>ls. 
where  he  ac«|uire<l  a  giKxl  Hngtish  etlucation.  On 
the  i,;thof  Novemljer,  1S77.  he  was  unite<l  in 
marriage  with  Miss  Loui.sii  Kolze,  a  native  of 
C<K)k  County,  111.,  l»orn  in  Leyden  Township. 
To  this  worthy  couple  have  lx:en  l)orn  two  chil- 
dren, sons,  l^mil  H.  and  Henr>-. 

Mr.  AhrlKiker  is  the  owner  of  a  valuable  fanu, 
comprising  one  hundred  and  fourteen  acres  of  the 
rich  prairie  lan<l  of  Illinois.  It  is  all  under  a  high 
slate  of  cultivation,  and  the  many  improvements 
ujx)!!  the  place  stand  as  moinnueiits  It)  the  enter- 
prise of  the  owner;  while  the  well  tilled  field.s  and 
neat  ajux-arance  indicate  his  careful  >u|x-rvi>ion. 
In  connection  with  general  Hmning,  heiscngagetl 


202 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAI^   RECORD. 


in  the  dain'  business,  and  for  this  purpose  keeps 
on  hand  twenty  fine  milch  cows.  This  industry 
adds  materially  to  his  income. 

In  his  political  affiliations,  Mr.  Ahrbecker  is  a 
Republican,  having  supported  that  party  since 
attaining  his  majority.  He  has  filled  the  office 
of  School  Director  of  his  district  and  is  now  serv- 
ing in  the  position  of  Commissioner  of  Highways. 
Religiously,  he  is  connected  with  the  Evangel- 
ical Church.  Few  men  of  the  county  have  longer 
resided  on  any  one  farm  than  our  subject.  His 
entire  life  has  been  spent  on  the  old  homestead, 
which  is  dear  to  him  for  the  old  associations  of 
his  boyhood  and  the  memories  of  later  years.  In 
the  community  where  he  has  lived  for  forty  years 
he  has  made  many  warm  friends,  and  he  has  the 
regard  of  all  with  whom  he  has  been  brought  in 
contact. 


-=]. 


-S) 


^H^ 


[^^ 


[~REDERICK  WILLIAM  MEYER,  who  owns 
JM  and  operates  a  farm  of  more  than  one  hun- 
I  ^  dred  acres  on  section  24,  is  recognized  as  one 
of  the  enterprising  and  .successful  agriculturi.sts  of 
Wayne  Township,  and  is  numbered  among  its 
early  settlers,  dating  his  residence  in  the  county 
from  1853.  The  record  of  his  life  is  as  follows: 
A  native  of  Germany,  he  was  born  in  Prussia, 
October  12,  1847,  and  is  a  .son  of  Frederick  Ber- 
nard Meyer.  The  latter  was  born  near  Magde- 
berg,  Prussia,  April  14,  1812.  He  spent  his  boy- 
hood with  his  parents  and  worked  in  a  tobacco 
factory .  When  seventeen  years  of  age  he  removed 
with  his  parents  to  Burg,  a  town  about  twelve 
miles  distant  from  Magdeberg.  At  Burg  he  learned 
the  trade  of  a  weaver  of  broadcloth.  At  that  place 
his  father  died  in  1830.  Mr.  Meyer  resided  there 
until  he  came  to  America.  When  he  was  twenty- 
seven  years  of  age  he  was  united  in  marriage  with 
Minnie  Buch,  and  together  they  started  for  the 
New  World  in  1853.  The  journey  was  unevent- 
ful until  they  came  within  four  miles  of  Chicago, 
when  the  mother  of  the  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
killed  in  a  railroad  accident,  the  father  and  two 
children  barely  escaping  with  their  lives.     Mrs. 


Meyer  died  of  her  injuries  April  25,  1853.  After 
remaining  in  Chicago  for  a  period  of  three  months, 
the  father  came  with  his  children  to  Blooming- 
dale  Township,  DuPage  Count}',  where  he  pur- 
chased a  farm  of  one  hundred  and  forty-eight 
acres  of  land.  He  improved  this  farm  and 
continued  to  reside  on  it  until  1886.  May  15, 
1854,  he  married  Miss  Gertrude  Engstler,  who  is 
still  li\ing.  In  1886,  he  moved  to  Wheaton,  111., 
leaving  the  care  and  cultivation  of  the  farm  to  his 
son  William. 

The  subject  of  this  .sketch  is  the  eldest  of  four 
.sons  and  three  daughters,  all  of  whom  have 
reached  mature  years,  while  five  of  the  number 
are  heads  of  families.  Frederick  spent  his  youth 
in  Bloomingdale  Town.ship,  and  like  a  dutiful  son 
gave  his  father  the  benefit  of  his  services  until  he 
had  attained  his  majority.  He  was  then  married 
in  Bloomingdale  to  Mi.ss  Elizabeth  Hahn,  the  wed- 
ding ceremony  being  performed  April  22,  1872. 
The  lady  was  born  in  Bloomingdale  Township, 
September  28,  1853,  and  is  a  daughter  of  Matthias 
Hahn,  a  native  of  Germany,  who  .settled  in  this 
county  in  1851.  She  is  the  youngest  of  a  family 
of  ten  children,  and  lived  with  her  parents  until 
her  marriage  with  Mr.  Meyer.  They  have  two 
children:  Charles  F.,  born  March  12,  1875,  and 
Minnie  S.,  born  November  13,    1877. 

Previous  to  his  marriage,  Mr.  Meyer  had  pur- 
chased a  farm  in  Bloomingdale  Township,  which 
he  operated  for  five  years.  He  then  sold  out,  and 
in  1876  came  to  the  farm  on  which  he  now  re- 
sides. It  comprises  one  hundred  and  twelve  acres 
of  well-improved  and  valuable  land.  On  it  are  a 
commodious  and  substantial  residence,  large  barns 
and  other  outbuildings,  which  are  models  of  con- 
venience, a  good  bearing  orchard,  well-kept  fences 
and  all  the  other  necessaries  and  improvements 
which  are  found  on  the  home  of  a  progressive  and 
enterprising  agriculturist.  Mr.  Meyer  began  life 
for  himself  empty-handed,  and  as  his  success  has 
been  achieved  entirely  through  his  own  efforts,  he 
may  well  be  called  a  self-made  man.  In  politics, 
he  was  formerly  a  Republican,  but  at  the  Presi- 
dential election  of  1892  he  voted  with  the  Demo- 
cratic party.  His  wife  is  a  member  of  the  Cath- 
olic Church  of  Wheaton,  but   he  adheres  to  the 


(Photo'd  by  Mills.) 


J2-<.cf^e^x3 


PORTRAIT  AND  HRKlKAl'IIICAI.    kl-CORD 


faith  of  the  Lutheran  Church.  In  thccotniunitity 
where  he  has  sik-iU  his  entire  life,  Mr.  Meyer  has 
a  lu>st  of  wann  friends,  and  this  fact  indicates  an 
honorable,  slraijjhtfonvard  career.  He  has  hvetl 
in  a  quiet  and  unassuining  niaiuit  <  n"!  liis  w.m 
the  estctMn  of  all. 


_i=i<' 


ITdWARDJ.  I,1:\\IS.  whoisengaRcd  in  the 
1^  real  estate  and  fire-insurance  business  in 
I  Wheatoii,  has  the  honor  of  lieing  a  native  of 
Illinois.  He  was  tiorn  at  Arlington  Heiji^hts,  in 
Cook  County,  on  the  4th  of  Jul>  .  1S6.V  Knter- 
ing  school,  he  nianifestetl  consitlerable  a])litude 
in  his  studies,  etisily  niasteriu);  the  conuuon 
branches,  and  at  the  age  of  fourteen  he  was  grad- 
uatetl  from  the  Hi;;h  Schix)!  at  Hhie  Island.  Ere 
his  sixteenth  birthday  he  had  graduatetl  from  the 
Bryant  &  Stratton  Business  College  of  Chicago. 
Since  that  time  he  has  traveled  extensively 
throughout  the  I'niteil  States,  and  his  reminis- 
cences of  his  journeys  have  made  him  an  enter- 
taining conversationalist. 

For  some  time  Mr.  Lewis  made  his  home  in 
Blue  Island,  and  did  nmch  for  its  ui>building. 
Since  May,  1891.  he  has  residctl  in  Wheaton, 
where  he  has  done  business  as  a  real-estate  and 
fire-insurance  agent.  Just  previous  to  locating 
here  he  returned  from  Central  America,  where  he 
had  been  traveling  for  pleasure.  He  clearly  and 
vividly  describes  his  trips,  and  as  he  has  stored  his 
mind  w  ith  many  interesting  and  instructive  facts 
he  proves  an  entertaining  companion. 

In  1892  Mr.  Lewis  was  united  in  marriage  with 
Mrs.  Julia  Street,  of  Turner.  Himself  and  wife 
arc  well  known  in  this  community  and  have  a 
large  circle  of  warm  friends.  Mr.  I^-wis  is  con- 
necte<l  with  several  civic  societies,  l>eloiiging  to 
the  Masonic  fraternity,  the  Knights  of  Pythias 
and  the  Modern  WiMxlmen  of  America.  In  jmli- 
tics,  he  is  a  supjxirler  of  Republican  j)rinciples, 
but  though  he  manifests  an  interest  in  political 
affairs,  as  ever>-  true  American  citizen  should, 
and  keeps  himself  well  infonned  on  the  issues  of 
the  day,  he  has  never  been  an  ofSccsecker. 


.Mr.  Lewis  does  an  extensive  insurance  business 
and  represents  the  following  companies:  the 
.Utna,  Hartford,  Fire  Association  of  IMiiladel- 
j>hia,  Ro\;d.  Home.  andei>;ht  other  leading  com 
panics.  It  is  to  such  men  that  the  prosjicrity  of 
the  city  is  due,  for  he  is  ever  alive  to  its  l)est  in- 
terests and  does  all  in  his  jM>wer  to  i>romote  the 
general  welfare.  He  is  a  plea.sitnt.  genial  gentle 
man,  keenly  alive  to  the  hinnorous,  and  wherever 
he  goes  wins  many  warm  friends. 


■"S3 


^r^ 


E=. 


y^.XKTIN  HKOWN  well  represents  the  busi- 
y  ness  interests  of  NajHrrville.  for  he  has  long 
VJ)  l>eeii  ajnnecled  with  nian\'  of  its  leading 
enterprises.  He  is  now  \'itx-- President  of  the 
First  National  Bank,  and  is  also  a  prominent 
merchant.  The  county  numl>ers  him  among  its 
early  settlers,  for  many  years  have  come  and 
gone  since  he  located  within  its  Iwrders.  During 
this  time  he  has  not  only  witnessed  its  growth 
and  develoi)ment.  but  has  ever  Inirne  his  j>art  in 
the  work  of  public  improvement  and  progress. 

A  native  of  Lancaster  County,  Pa.,  Mr.  Brown 
was  lx)rn  on  the  ,^d  of  August.  1831,  and  is  a  son 
of  David  Brown,  who  was  also  lx)rn  in  I.^ncaster 
County.  In  his  youth  the  father  learned  the 
blacksmith's  trade,  and  later  in  life  followed 
farming.  In  1S44  he  emigrated  to  DuPage 
County,  Uicating  five  miles  from  Xa|>erville.  His 
father.  Martin  Brown,  was  also  a  native  of  the 
Ke\  stone  State,  and  the  grandfather,  a  native  of 
(lennany,  foundetl  the  family  in  America  prior 
to  the  Revolution.  The  mother  of  our  subject 
lK)re  the  maiden  name  of  Sarah  Fry.  She.  too. 
was  lionj  in  Pennsylvania,  and  her  father,  Martin 
Fry,  who  was  Ixjrn  in  that  State,  was  of  German 
lineage.  She  died  when  our  subject  was  only 
seven  years  of  age.  after  which  the  father  wxs 
again  married. 

Mr.  Brown  who>e  name  heatls  this  reconl  was 
a  lad  of  thirteen  years  when  he  came  with  his 
parents  to  DuPage  County.  He  la-gan  his  edu- 
cation in  his  native  State,  and  comi>leted  it  in  the 
district  schools  of  this  neighWrhoixl.     fntil  ninc- 


10 


2o6 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


teen  years  of  age,  he  remained  under  the  parental 
roof,  aiding  in  the  labors  of  the  home  farm,  and 
then  went  to  Chicago,  where  he  secured  a  situa- 
tion as  clerk  in  a  general  store,  in  which  he  spent 
two  years.  In  1853  he  went  to  California,  and 
upon  the  Pacific  Slope  remained  for  two  years 
and  five  months,  engaged  in  mining  at  Mormon 
Creek.  On  the  expiration  of  that  period  he  re- 
turned home  by  way  of  the  Isthmus  of  Panama 
and  New  York  City,  the  old  mail  line.  He  then 
came  to  Naperville  on  the  Northwestern  Rail- 
road. While  he  was  in  the  West,  he  had  sent 
his  money  home  to  his  father,  who  had  invested 
it  in  land,  and  for  three  years  after  his  return  he 
engaged  in  farming. 

On  the  17th  of  October,  1857,  Mr.  Brown  mar- 
ried Matilda  Rickert,  a  native  of  Pennsylvania, 
who  came  to  DuPage  County  when  a  little 
maid  of  five  summers  with  her  parents,  Samuel 
and  Esther  Rickert,  who  were  also  natives  of  the 
Keystone  State.  The  year  of  their  arrival  was 
1844.  Three  children  have  been  born  unto  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Brown,  a  son  and  two  daughters : 
Emma,  at  home;  Lincoln,  who  is  the  proprietor 
of  a  general  store  in  Holdrege,  Neb. ;  and  May, 
at  home. 

In  1862  Mr.  Brown  began  clerking  in  the  gen- 
eral store  of  A.  C.  Yundt,  and  after  two  years  he 
bought  out  his  employer,  in  connection  with  his 
father.  This  partnership  continued  for  three 
>-ears,  when  the  father  sold  out,  and  for  five  years 
Martin  Brown  had  another  partner.  Since  that 
time  he  has  been  alone  in  business.  In  company 
with  others,  he  organized  the  First  National 
Bank  of  Naperville,  of  which  he  is  now  Vice- 
President,  and  as  he  always  carries  forward  to  a 
successful  completion  whatever  he  undertakes, 
these  enterprises  have  been  prosperous  ventures. 
Although  his  time  has  been  largely  taken  up 
with  business  interests,  he  has  yet  been  an  active 
and  faithful  worker  in  the  Evangelical  Church, 
with  which  he  holds  membership,  and  of  which 
he  is  now  serving  as  Trustee.  He  has  also  been 
Class-leader  for  the  long  period  of  thirty  years, 
and  most  of  that  time  was  Superintendent  of  the 
Sunday-school.  He  possesses  many  noble  traits 
of  character,  and  an  honorable,  upright  life,  free 


from  even  the  petty  intrigues  which  so  often 
characterize  business  life,  has  won  for  him  the 
confidence  and  high  regard  of  those  with  whom 
he  has  been  brought  in  contact. 


_^] 


^+^ 


(S_ 


(S~ 


30HN  FREDERICK  FISCHER,  a  retired 
farmer  residing  on  section  36,  Addison  Town- 
ship, is  luimbered  among  the  early  settlers  of 
DuPage  County,  of  1836.  Only  a  few  years  be- 
fore that  time  the  first  pioneer  of  the  county  lo- 
cated within  its  borders,  and  when  the  Fischer 
family  arrived  there  were  but  few  settlements. 
Neighbors  were  widely  scattered,  land  was  in  its 
primitive  condition,  and  the  marks  of  civilization 
and  progress  were  few.  The  early  settlers,  who 
bore  the  hard.ships  of  frontier  life,  deser^-e  great 
credit,  for  they  were  the  founders  of  the  county, 
and  its  present  prosperity  and  advanced  position 
are  largely  due  to  their  .self-sacrificing  efforts. 
Among  these  is  numbered  J.  F.  Fischer. 

Our  .subject  was  born  near  Hanover,  Germany, 
March  17,  1823,  and  is  the  third  child  and  sec- 
ond son  of  Conrad  and  Loui.sa  (  Reinking)  Fischer. 
Further  mention  of  his  parents  is  made  in  the 
sketch  of  August  Fischer,  on  another  page  of  this 
work.  When  he  was  a  youth  of  thirteen  years 
occurred  the  breaking  of  home  ties  in  the  Father- 
land, the  crossing  of  the  Atlantic,  and  the  arrival 
in  the  new  home  in  DuPage  County,  111.  While 
.still  a  youth,  he  went  to  Chicago  and  worked  as 
porter  in  the  United  States  Hotel,  in  which 
"Long  John"  Wentworth  was  then  boarding.  Af- 
ter three  years  and  a-half  of  service  at  that  place, 
he  returned  to  this  county,  although  at  that  time 
it  was  comprised  within  the  limits  of  Cook  Coun- 
ty. Here  he  worked  on  a  farm,  clearing  and  de- 
veloping land. 

In  1846,  Mr.  Fischer  was  united  in  marriage 
with  Miss  Henrietta  Mesenbrink,  who  was  also  a 
native  of  Hanover,  Germany.  She  died,  leaving 
three  children,  a  son  and  two  daughters:  Louisa, 
wife  of  Fred  Koch,  of  Elmhurst;  Caroline,  wife 
of  Henry  Bucholz,  a  resident  of  York  Township; 
and  Albert,  who  also  makes  his  home  in   Elm- 


PORTRAIT  AND  HIOGRAPHICAL    RECORD. 


JOT 


hurst.      In  1881.  Mr.  Fischer  was  again  marrictl, 
hi.s  sct-ond  uniiin  bcinK  with  Dorothy  Cluthc, 
native  of  Cicnnany. 

Mr.  Fischer  locatwl   upon   the  fann   where  he 
now  resides  in    1846.     Then-  were  hut  few  im- 
provements upon   the  place,  the  onlv  otie  of  any 
account  being  a  small  house.     Our  subject,  how- 
ever^ po?*cs!Kol  all  niix^s.ir>  eiier>;\  .  an<l  now  has 
one  of  the   valuable   and   <U>irat>le   pklifs  of  the 
community.      He  is  the  owner  of  three  hundred 
^  in  one  UkIv .  ijioludiiig  a  twenty-four 
".iniljer-land.      He  has  erei'tetl  a  good 
dwelling,  bams  and  outbuildings,  and  has  planted 
trees,  which  add  l¥)th  to  the  value  and  attractive- 
ness   of   the  plai-e.      Kvery  thing    is    kept    up    in 
first-class  order,  and  the  progressive  and    enter- 
•  of  the  owner   is  manifested    by   the 
lice  of  the  fann. 
In   1878,   Mr.    Fischer  suffered  the  loss  of  his 
left  leg  l>elow  the  knee,  on  account  of  its  lieing  in- 
jurwl  in  a  threshing-machine..     Since  that  time 
he  has  rented  his  land  and  practically  lived  a  re- 
tired life.      For  three  years  he  has  held  the  office 
of  Road  Commissioner,  discharging  his  duties  in 
a  faithful  and  acceptable  manner.      He  .supported 
(fHiver  C       '       \   for  the   Pre.sidency,  but   hfilds 
liiiUM.-Ii  i  .lit  in   politics.      A   plea.saiit  ep- 

och in  the  life  of  Mr.  Fischer  was  his  return  to 
the  Fatherland  in  1884.  He  vi.site<l  his  old  home 
and  the  scenes  of  his  youth,  and  al.so  spent  some 
time  in  travel  in  Switzerland,  viewing  the  Alps 
and  many  other  places  of  beauty  and  historic  in- 
terest. 


^■^m 


^3 


HOMAS  BROWN,  who  follows  general  far- 
miii  '       •ck-raising  on  sci-tion  i<>.  Win- 

fiel  :iip,  is  a  native  of  Kngland      He 

was  bom  in  Yorkshire.  I>eceml>er  7,  1812.  and  is 
the  only  chil.;  '  "cw  and  Klizalx-th  <  Kelsey  ' 
Hrown.      B>     ■  11  the  father  was   a    fanner. 

and  followed  that  business  throughout  his  entire 
life.      Both  J.         •    '       '        '  "ii-d  in  England. 

In  the   usi.  nicr   lad«..   Thomas 

Brown  spent  his  bo>' hood  and  youth.  Hisjedu- 
catio:ial  prix-ilegcs  were  quite  limited,  but  through 


cxiHrrieiKtr  and  ol>ser\ation    he   has   acquired  a 
tical    business    education.      His    father    dieil 
!i  he  was  about  nine  years  of  age,  and  he  then 
Went   to  live  with  an  uncle,   with  whom   he  re 
inainetl  until  a  M>uth  of  fourteen.      He   then  l>e 
gan  earning  his  own  livelilxxKl  and  providevl  for 
his  supjxirt  by  working  as  a  fann  hand.      He  re 
ix-ivc<l  only  ^4  jier  year.      He  was  thus  employed 
until  nineteen  ye:irs  of  age,  when   he  deteniiiued 
to  seek  a  home  in  America. 

It  was  in  1.S51.  that  Mr.  Brown  lx>ardeil  a  sail- 
ingves.sel,  which,  after  six  weeks  and  four  days 
spent  ujxin  the  lx>som  of  the  Atlantic,  dropped 
anchor  in  the  harlxir  <if  New  York  City.  He 
landeti  and  locatetl  in  Schenectady,  N.  Y.,  where 
he  remained  for  .some  twelve  years.  In  1843,  he 
came  to  DuPage  County,  making  the  trip  by 
c~anal  and  Lakes  to  Chicago.  Locating  in  Win- 
field  Township,  he  operated  a  rented  farm  for 
seven  years,  when,  with  the  capital  he  had  ac- 
quired through  industry-  and  economy,  he  pur- 
chased forty  acres  of  land,  upmn  which  he  now  re- 
sides. Here  he  carries  on  general  fanning  and 
st<K'k- raising.  .Tiid  his  fields  are  well  tilled  and  im- 
proved. 

On  the  Kith  ol  Januan.-,  1.S34,  Mr.  Brown  raar- 
rie<l  Miss  Cornelia  M.  X'anvolkenberg.  Seven  chil- 
dren have  been  bom  unto  them,  five  sons  and  two 
daughters,  but  four  are  now  deceased.  Catherine 
died  in  infancy:  William  H.  is  a  miner,  living  in 
Melrose,  Mont.;  John  E.  died  December  12, 
1S73:  Mary  is  at  home:  NLirk  is  living  in  Mon- 
tana: and  James  H.  died  in  infancy. 

Mr.  Brown  supports  the  Republican  party  by 
his  ballot  and  has  heUl  a  numlierof  public  offi'  1  - 
having  scrvetl  as  Highway  Conunissioner,  T«'\\n 
ship  Super^•isor,  Superintendent  of  the  County 
Farm  and  S<.-hool  Direi-tor.  He  is  a  memljer  of 
the  Congregational  ChuR-h,  contributes  liberally 
to  its  support,  and  takes  an  active  interest  in  re- 
ligious and  l>eiievolent  work.  Mr  Brown  alw.ns 
t>ears  his  part  in  the  upbuilding  and  tlevelopint  nt 
of  the  county,  and  has  helitetl  to  lay  out  many  of 
1"  -  in  this  l<ii-alit\       There  were  only  three 

i:  :  Turner  when  he  first  loi-ate<l  here,  and 

he  has  witnessed  much  of  tlie  growth  and  prog- 
ress of  the   exjunty       In    1890,   Mr     Browtj  was 


208 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


called  upon  to  mourn  the  loss  of  his  wife,  who 
passed  away  on  the  19th  of  Februan,-.  She  died 
in  the  faith  of  the  Congregational  Church,  and 
was  laid  to  rest  in  Oakwood  Cemetery, of  Turner. 


SJ 


^+^ 


■^=s^ 


[=■ 


"rum AN  JONES,  who  is  now  living  a  re- 
tired life  in  Warrenville,  was  born  in  Wash- 
ington County,  N.  Y.,  on  the  9th  of  Sep- 
tember, 1812,  and  is  one  of  six  children  whose 
parents  were  Reuben  and  Amy  ( Bentley )  Jones. 
There  were  two  sons  and  four  daughters,  but  our 
subject  is  now  the  only  survivor  of  the  family. 
His  father  was  a  native  of  Connecticut,  and  was 
of  Welsh  descent.  Upon  the  home  farm,  Mr. 
Jones  whose  name  heads  this  record  spent  the 
days  of  his  boyhood  and  youth.  He  attended  the 
common  schools,  but  his  educational  privileges 
were  quite  limited.  He  remained  with  his  par- 
ents until  he  had  arrived  at  man's  estate, and  then 
took  charge  of  his  father's  farm,  which  he  oper- 
ated for  about  two  years. 

In  June,  1836,  Mr.  Jones  removed  to  Ashta- 
bula County,  Ohio,  making  the  trip  by  water, 
and  purchased  one  hundred  and  twenty  acres  of 
heavily  timbered  land.  There  he  lived  until  the 
fall  of  1837,  when  he  came  to  Illinois,  and  located 
in  DuPage  County.  The  journey  to  this  place 
was  made  by  team  and  occupied  twenty-two  days. 
In  Winfield  Township,  he  purchased  two  hun- 
dred and  twenty  acres  of  land,  upon  which  was  a 
small  log  cabin,  that  served  for  their  dwelling- 
house  for  two  years,  after  some  repairs  had  been 
made  upon  it.  He  afterwards  traded  his  property 
for  another  farm  of  two  hundred  and  eighty  acres, 
upon  which  he  made  his  home  until  1843,  when 
he  removed  to  the  farm  where  his  son  Albert  now 
resides.  It  comprises  one  hundred  and  eighty 
acres  of  good  land,  and  he  successfully  continued 
its  cultivation  until  1866,  when  he  purchased  the 
property  on  which  he  now  lives.  Since  1881  he 
has  lived  a  retired  life. 

On  the  20th  of  November,  1833,  Mr.  Jones  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Mary  Millard,  a 
daughter  of  Robert  and  Desire   (Matthews)   Mil- 


lard. She  was  born  in  Washington  County,  N.Y., 
February  14,  181 5,  and  is  one  of  ten  children, 
five  .sons  and  five  daughters.  She  has  two  sisters 
living.  Desire  and  Eucilla.  Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Jones  were  born  three  children.  Albert  Truman, 
a  farmer  and  stock-raiser,  resides  on  the  old 
homestead.  He  married  Ruth  Bentley,  and  they 
have  had  three  children,  of  whom  two  are  living. 
Their  .son,  Bentley  S.,  died  in  1887.  Truman 
Albert  and  Mar}-  R.  still  survive.  Of  the  other 
children  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Jones,  Marj^  D.  became 
the  wife  of  Theodore  M.  Manning,  and  died  Feb- 
ruary 3,  1868;  and  Lucy  M.  died  in  childhood. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Jones  are  members  of  the  Baptist 
Church,  and  have  always  taken  an  active  part  in 
church  work.  The  poor  and  needy  find  in  them 
a  friend,  and  they  are  charitable  and  benevolent 
people.  Mr.  Jones  is  a  Republican,  having  sup- 
ported that  party  since  its  organization.  In  the 
early  days  of  his  residence  here  he  used  to  haul 
his  grain  to  Chicago.  He  has  borne  all  the  ex- 
periences an  1  hardships  of  a  frontier  life  and  has 
seen  the  grovvth  and  development  of  the  county 
from  an  early  age.  He  well  deserves  mention 
among  its  honored  pioneers. 


l^-ir^ 


1^ 


E  WESLEY  GARY,  a  well-known  farmer 
and  stock-raiser,  who  resides  on  .section  15, 
Winfield  Township,  was  born  on  the  farm 
where  he  now  resides  on  the  5th  of  May,  1844. 
He  is  the  youngest  son  of  Charles  Gary,  whose 
biograph>-  will  be  found  elsewhere  in  this  work. 
Mr.  Gary  whose  name  heads  this  record  was 
boni  and  reared  upon  the  farm  where  he  now  lives, 
and  the  pleasant  memories  of  his  bo>hood  and 
youth,  as  well  as  the  recollections  of  his  later 
years,  are  a.ssociated  with  the  old  homestead.  He 
attended  the  district  schools,  and  at  the  age  of 
twenty  years,  upon  his  marriage,  took  charge  of 
the  farm,  continuing  its  operation  until  1877, 
when  he  went  to  Turner,  and  purchased  a  hard- 
ware store,  in  connection  with  J.  W.  Gates.  Al- 
ter a  .short  time  he  bought  out  his  partner's  inter- 
est in  the  business,  which  he  carried  on  alone  for 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAlillCAI.    RI-XORD. 


-S 


^-^[ 


four  years,  wiu-ii  ht-  adiniUc-*!  (>  M  Hartli  to 
partnership.  After  three  years  lie  sold  out  to  his 
partner  anil  returne<l  to  the  f:inn.  where  he  has 
since  made  his  home.  Here  he  successfully  car- 
ries on  Ktiieral  farminj;  and  stix-k- raising.  This 
farm  was  entered  by  his  father  in  i.S,^;.  His  two 
uncles,  Krastus  and  Judas  Gary,  came  to  the 
county  in  i»32.  and  the  Gary  family  is  therefore 
numl)ere<l  among  its  earliest  settlers.  I 

On  Christmas  Day  of  1864,  C.  Wesley  Gary 
was  uniteil  in  marriaye  with  Miss  Maria  J.  Pierce, 
daughter  of  Thomxs  and  Eli/alxth  Pierce.  They 
had  three  children:  Charles:  Nettie,  wife  of  Frank 
Hanscom.  a  farmer  of  Beatrice,  Neb.;  and  El!a. 
The  mother  died  Novemtx-r  13,  1872,  and  was 
laid  to  rest  in  Wheaton  Cemetery-.  Mr.  Gar\-  was 
married  Octol)er  i.^,  1874.  to  Miss  Man-,  daugh- 
ter of  William  and  Jane  Baker.  They  had  one 
child,  Lula,  who  died  April  13,  1893,  in  her  eigh- 
teenth year,  and  was  buried  in  Wheaton  Cemeten-. 

In  his  political  affiliations,  Mr.  Gar>  is  a  Re- 
publican, and  has  ser\-ed  his  township  as  Sujjer- 
\nsor  for  a  period  of  seven  years.  He  was  also 
Tnustee.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Masonic  frater- 
nity, and  belongs  to  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church.  His  support  and  co-operation  are  given 
to  all  public  enteqirises  calculated  to  proniote  the 
general  welfare,  and  the  community  finds  in  him 
a  valued  citizen. 


3AMi:.S  J.  HUNT,  a  retired  merchant  of  Na- 
perville.  claims  Peinisylvania  as  the  State  of 
his  nativity.  He  was  boni  in  Crawford 
County,  in  1824,  and  is  a  son  of  James  and  Sarah 
(Jewell  I  Hunt.  The  parents  were  natives  of  the 
Green  Mountain  J^tate.  and  had  nine  children,  of 
whom  James  J.  was  the  fourth  in  order  of  birth. 
The  father  was  a  blacksmith,  and  in  1830  went 
with  his  family  to  Erie,  Pa.  In  1844  he  came  to 
Naper\ille,  but  not  long  after  went  to  De  Kalb 
County,  where  he  and  his  wife  spent  their  re- 
maining days. 

The  e<lucational  privileges  our  subject  received 
were  those  of  the  common  schtxil.     At  the  age  of 


eighteen  he  lugan  working  at  the  blacksnuth  s 
trade,  and  the  following  year  visited  the  West, 
sj)en(ling  the  summer  in  NajH.r\ ille,  after  which 
he  returnetl  lionie.  In  1843  he  was  uniteil  in 
marriage  with  Miss  Nancy  Converse,  a  native  of 
Ivrie  Countv,  Pa.,  and  the  following  \ear  they 
came  to  this  placx*.  For  one  year  Mr.  Hunt  was 
employed  in  a  plow-shoi),  and  in  1846  oix;ne<l  a 
blacksmith  shop,  where  he  carried  on  business  for 
twelve  years.  In  1855  he  engage<l  in  the  livers- 
business,  but  in  1861  sold  out  to  enter  the  service 
of  his  couMtr\  . 

Mr.  Hunt  had  previously  served  as  Captain  of 
a  companx'  of  militia,  which  he  had  raiseiJ  in 
NajK-rville,  and  was  now  elected  Captain  of  the 
Thirteenth  Infantn.-,  with  which  he  went  to  Dixon, 
111.  There  he  resigned  his  office  in  favor  of  Judge 
Blanchard.  He  then  returned  home  and  raised 
another  company,  notifying  Gov.  Bates,  who 
answered  that  he  should  disband.  Mr.  Hunt  had 
sacrificed  his  business  in  order  to  enter  the  army, 
but  he  Ixjught  it  back  and  carried  on  a  liver>- 
stable  fur  a  >ear.  In  1S61  he  bought  out  a  hard- 
w-are  and  agricultural-implement  store,  which  was 
conducted  by  his  sons  until  after  the  war,  when 
he  assumed  charge  and  successfully  txirried  on 
operations  along  that  line  for  scmie  years. 

In  1872,  Mr.  Hunt  was  called  upon  to  mouni 
the  loss  of  his  wife,  who  died  in  California, 
whither  she  went  for  her  health.  She  left  four 
children:  F'rank  W.  ami  Charles  C.  hardware 
merchants  of  Naix-rville;  James  E.,  now-  of  Da- 
kota; and  ICva  E.  On  the  3*!  of  September.  1874, 
Mr.  Hunt  was  again  married,  his  second  union 
Ix-ing  with  Miss  Lucia  A.  Davis,  a  native  of  New 
York. 

In  earlv  life,  Mr.  Hunt  was  a  supporter  of  the 
Whig  ])arty,  and  lias  upheld  the  banner  of  the 
Republican  parts  since  its  organization.  In  1856 
he  was  elccte<l  Sheriff  of  the  county  ami  se^^■ed 
one  term.  F»»r  over  twenty  years  he  has  served 
as  Justice  of  the  Peace  and  Police  Magistrate,  and 
has  never  had  a  verdict  changed  by  the  Circuit 
Court  during  that  time.  His  rulings  have  l>een 
w-ise  and  just,  and  his  long  contiiuiamx.-  in  office 
shows  that  his  fellow-townsmen  repose  the  utmost 
confidence  in  him   and  appreciate  his  ability  and 


2IO 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


fidelity.  He  has  alwa5's  been  a  friend  to  those 
enterprises  calculated  to  benefit  the  count}-,  which 
finds  in  him  a  valued  citizen.  Mr.  Hunt  is  now 
living  a  retired  life,  enjoying  the  rest  which  he 
has  so  truly  earned  and  richly  deserves. 


^+^ 


1^- 


-=) 


(Tames  I.  ferry,  deceased,  was  a  well- 
I  known  fanner  of  DuPage  County.  He  was 
Q)  born  in  Naperville  Township  on  the  30th  of 
May,  1848,  and  was  a  representative  of  one  ot  the 
pioneer  families.  His  father,  who  was  born  in 
Whitehall,  N.  Y.,  came  to  DuPage  County  at 
an  early  day,  about  1840,  but  death  soon  took 
him  from  his  new  home.  The  mother  of  our 
subject  bore  the  maiden  name  of  Mariette  Wood- 
man, and  her  death  occurred  when  her  son  was  a 
youth  of  sixteen  years. 

Upon  the  farm  where  his  widow  now  resides, 
James  I.  Ferry  was  reared  to  manhood,  aiding  in 
the  labors  of  the  farm  through  the  .summer  months, 
and  attending  the  district  schools  of  the  neighbor- 
hood through  the  winter  .season.  When  he  be- 
gan to  earn  his  own  livelihood,  it  was  by  follow- 
ing the  pursuit  to  which  he  had  been  reared,  and 
throughout  life  he  continued  a  farmer.  As  a 
companion  and  helpmate  on  life's  journey,  he 
chose  Miss  Sarah  C.  Briggs,  who  was  born  in 
England,  July  19,  1853.  Her  father,  Thomas 
Briggs,  was  a  native  of  the  same  countr>',  and  in 
1855  crossed  the  Atlantic  to  America,  locating  in 
Dundee,  111.,  where  he  followed  farming  until 
1856.  He  then  came  to  DuPage  County  and  now 
makes  his  home  with  his  daughter,  Mrs.  Ferr\-. 
He  married  Miss  Eliza  Malthouse,  a  native  of 
England,  who  died  in  1886.  They  had  two  daugh- 
ters, Mrs.  Nellie  Eleson,  of  Turner,  111.,  and  Mrs. 
Ferry,  the  younger,  who  was  only  two  years  old 
when  the  family  came  to  America.  Her  father 
visited  England  and  the  scenes  of  his  boyhood  in 

1893- 

In    1870,    was  celebrated  the   marriage  of  our 

subject  and  his  wife,  and  by  their  union  were  born 

six  children,  four  sons  and  two  daughters:  George, 

at  home;  LiHie  E.,  who  visited  England  with  her 


grandfather  in  1893;  Ella  M.,  who  is  engaged  in 
teaching;  Clarence  E.,  Henry  H.  and  Ira  W., 
all  of  whom  are  yet  with  their  mother.  The 
daughters  have  attended  the  High  Schools  of 
Aurora  and  Wheaton,  and  Lillie  E.  is  a  successful 
music  teacher,  while  Ella,  who  is  only  seventeen 
years  of  age,  is  employed  in  teaching  school. 
George  W.  attended  the  business  college  of 
Aurora,  111.  Mrs.  Ferry  her.self  began  teaching 
when  onl}'  fourteen  years  of  age,  and  although  so 
young  met  with  excellent  success  in  her  work. 

In  his  political  affiliations,  Mr.  Ferry  was  a 
Republican  for  many  years,  but  prior  to  his  death 
became  a  Prohibitionist.  He  sen-ed  as  School 
Director  for  many  years,  and  the  cause  of  educa- 
tion found  in  him  a  warm  friend.  In  religious 
belief  he  was  a  Congregationalist.  Those  who 
knew  him,  and  his  friends  were  many,  esteemed 
him  highly  for  his  sterling  worth  and  many  ex- 
cellencies of  character,  and  his  death,  which  oc- 
curred November  i,  1887,  was  deeply  mourned 
throughout  the  community.  Mrs.  Ferr>'  was  ap- 
pointed administratrix  of  the  estate, and  since  her 
husband's  death  has  managed  the  farm,  compris- 
ing two  hundred  and  thirty-two  acres  of  rich  and 
valuable  land,  which  yields  a  good  income  to  the 
owner.  The  family  is  widely  and  favorably 
known  throughout  DuPage  County,  and  the 
Ferry  household  is  the  abode  of  hospitality,  its 
members  ranking  high  in  the  social  circles  in 
which  thev  move. 


_=] 


"SD 


^h1h^1-= 


Gll'GUST  FISCHER,  who  carries  on  general 
/  I  farming  on  section  26,  Addison  Township, 
/  I  is  numbered  among  the  honored  pioneers  of 
DuPage  County,  his  residence  here  dating  from 
1836 — covering  a  period  of  fifty-seven  years.  The 
greater  part  of  his  boyhood  and  youth  has  here 
been  passed,  and  it  has  been  the  scene  of  his  en- 
tire manhood's  career.  He  was  born  near  Han- 
over, Germany,  on  the  26th  of  February,  1826. 
His  father,  Conrad  Fi.scher,  who  was  also  born  in 
the  .same  locality,  and  was  a  tanner  and  saddler 
in  the  Old  Country,    married  Louisa   Reinking. 


PORTRAIT  AND  RTOr.RAPHICAL  RECORD. 


211 


In  i>j;r'  tiicx  kulf  ailuii  to  their  old  liMim.  .luu  m 
a  sailing-vcSM:!  crossed  the  briny  ilctrp  to  seek  a 
new  home  in  America.  Their  destination  was 
DuPage  County.  111.,  and  they  made  a  location 
in  Addison  Township,  moving  into  a  log  cahin. 
Here  the  father  carried  on  agriodtural  pursuits 
until  his  death,  which  occurred  at  the  age  of 
eighty-four  years.  His  wife  jKis-sed  away  at  the 
age  of  eighty-three.  Their  family  nundx-retl  six 
children,  three  sons  and  three  daughters,  of  whom 
five  grew  to  manluHxl  and  womanhood,  the  re- 
maining child  ha\  iug  fallen  off  a  steamboat  at 
Buffalo,  while  the  family  were  en  route  for  De- 
troit. 

August  Fischer  was  the  fourth  in  order  of  birth. 
His  first  ten  years  were  jxuised  in  the  Fatherland 
and  he  then  came  to  Illinois.  He  conned  his 
lessons  in  a  log  schoolhouse  in  Addison  Town- 
ship, and  afterward  attended  school  to  some  ex- 
tent in  Chicago.  With  the  family  he  experieiiceil 
the  hardships  and  difficulties  of  life  on  the  fron- 
tier, and  was  early  inured  to  the  arduous  labf»r  of 
developing  wild  land.  His  training  in  youth, 
howe\-er,  made  him  a  self-reliant  man  and  fitted 
him  for  the  duties  of  a  practical  bu.siness  life. 

Mr.  Fischer  was  married  in  Addison  Township, 
on  the  27th  of  May,  1849.  to  Eliza  Heckroot,  who 
was  bom  near  Hanover,  Germany,  December  25, 
1.S28.  There  she  lived  until  a  maiden  of  thirteen 
summers,  when,  with  her  parents,  she  came  to 
this  country-,  the  family  locating  in  Addison 
Township.  She  is  the  fourth  of  nine  children. 
She  was  educated  in  the  common  schools,  and  her 
girlhood  days  were  spent  in  the  usual  manner  of 
farmers'  daughters  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Fi.schcr  began 
their  domestic  life  upon  the  old  homestead  where 
they  still  live.  Their  union  has  been  bles.sc<l  with 
five  children,  all  of  whom  were  \x>ni  and  reared 
on  the  farm,  namely:  Otto,  who  is  now  living  in 
Addison  Township:  Amelia,  wife  of  Adam  Glos, 
who  is  engaged  in  the  hardware  bu.siness:  Gusta- 
vus  and  Charles,  who  are  still  at  home:  and 
I^ouisa,  now  deceased. 

Mr.  Fischer  is  the  ijwner  of  five  hundred  acres 
of  land,  all  in  one  body,  and  he  devotes  his  time 
and  attention  to  general  farming,  stock-raising 
and  the  dair>  buMnc?»s.      He  keeps  on  hand  a  fine 


1,1.1. le  of  cattle  ai\d  horses,  and  takes  just  pride  in 
his  well-tille<l  fields,  which  in  their  neat  apjjear 
aiicc  attest  the  thrift  of  the  owner.  Mr  Fischer 
is  a  self-made  man,  and  the  smvess  of  his  life  is 
due  to  his  own  efforts.  By  untinng  lalior  he  has 
risen  step  by  step  from  a  hunililc  position  to  one  «jf 
affluence.  Me  and  his  faniilx  are  nieml»ers  of  the 
Eva:igelical  Church,  and  in  {politics  he  has  always 
bee.i  a  Republican.  Ijion  the  farm  where  his  own 
youth  was  passetl  he  has  spent  his  wedded  life 
and  reared  his  family,  and  in  all  prolxibility  it  will 
be  his  home  until  he  is  called  to  the  home  beyond. 
He  has  lived  in  such  a  way  that  he  has  the  high 
regard  of  all,  aiul  well  deser\es  mention  among 
the  prominent  citizens  of  his  adopted  county. 


f-V^f 


-=) 


I.  GUILD,  M.  D.,  a  physician  and  surgeon 
f  Wayne,  is  one  of  the  native  sons  of  Illi- 
nois. He  was  bom  in  Wayne  Township, 
this  county.  December  5,  1859.  His  father.  Dr. 
E.  C.  Guild,  is  a  resident  of  Wheaton.  1  See  biog- 
raphy in  this  work.  )  Dr.  W.  L.  Guihl  spent  the 
days  of  his  boyhotnl  and  youth  in  his  i»arents' 
home,  and  acquired  a  good  education  in  the  Elgin 
Academy.  Having  determine*!  to  make  the  prac- 
tice of  medicine  his  life  work,  he  lx*gan  its  study 
with  his  father,  and  like  him  took  a  course  of 
lectures  in  Bennett  Metlical  College,  from  which 
institution  he  was  graduite<l  in  1884.  He  then 
located  in  Wayne,  where  he  at  once  began  prac- 
tice. After  several  years  he  entere<l  the  Chicago 
Homu:]>alhic  College,  where  he  pursued  a  course 
of  study,  and  was  graduated  from  that  institution 
in  tht;  spring  of  1 S92.  He  keeps  well  abreast  with 
everything  coiinecte<l  with  or  concerning  his  pro- 
feitsion,  and  has  built  up  a  large  and  lucrative  prac- 
tice. He  is  very  successful,  and  his  skill  and 
ability  have  won  him  a  prominent  plaiv  among 
his  professional  brethren. 

On  the  i.;th  of  September,  i»84.  Dr  Guild  was 
joine<l  in  wedlock  with  Miss  Fidelia  I..,  daughter 
of  H.  R.  and  Jennie  W<»odc-ock  .She  was  Uirii  in 
Bremer  County,  Iowa,  and  Is  a  highlv  etlucated, 
cultured  and  refined  lady,   who  gniduatetl  from 


212 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


the  Chautauqua  Course.  She  is  a  member  of  the 
Baptist  Church,  and  the  Doctor  contributes  liber- 
ally to  church  and  benevolent  work.  In  his  po- 
litical affiliations,  he  is  a  Republican,  having  been 
identified  with  that  parts-  since  becoming  a  voter. 
He  cast  his  first  Presidential  ballot  for  James  G. 
Blaine  in  1884.  He  takes  quite  an  active  interest 
in  local  politics,  has  served  as  a  delegate  to  the 
various  conventions  of  his  party,  and  as  a  member 
of  the  Central  Committee.  He  has  served  as  a 
member  of  the  School  Board  for  eight  years,  and 
has  done  effective  service  in  the  cause  of  education. 
Socially,  the  Doctor  is  connected  with  the  Mod- 
ern Woodmen  of  America,  and  is  examining  phy- 
sician for  Juniper  Camp  No.  559,  M.  W.  A.  He 
also  belongs  to  the  Knights  of  the  Maccabees,  and 
is  also  examining  physician  for  that  order.  He 
owns  some  real  estate  in  Chicago,  also  in  Wayne, 
and  has  a  nice  residence  property  here,  in  which  he 
makes  his  home.  He  is  ever  found  in  the  front 
rank  for  the  advancement  of  public  enterprises 
and  improvements,  being  thoroughly  alive  to  the 
best  interests  of  his  native  county. 


c=1 


"S] 


^+^ 


r^ 


[=" 


HENRY  DANN  COMPTON,  one  of  the  bus- 
iest residents  of  Wheaton,  has  doubtless  done 
more  than  any  other  individual  in  it  toward 
building  up  that  city.  He  was  born  September 
29,  1S43,  at  Honeoye  Falls,  Monroe  County, 
N.  Y.,  and  is  a  son  of  Henry  and  Mary  (Gray) 
Compton,  natives  of  Vermont,  now  residents  of 
Lapeer,  Mich.  Henry  Compton  is  a  farmer,  and 
removed  to  Michigan  in  1863.  Since  he  w-as 
twelve  years  old,  Dann  Compton  has  made  his 
own  way  in  the  world,  and  has  achie\-ed  an  envi- 
able success. "  For  some  years  he  worked  on  farms 
in  New  York  and  Michigan,  and  came  to  Wheaton 
in  the  spring  of  1862. 

In  the  following  summer  he  enlisted  as  a  pri- 
vate in  the  One  Hundred  and  Fifth  Illinois  In- 
fantrj'.  Company  F,  and  served  until  June,  1865, 
taking  part  in  the  Grand  Review  at  Washington. 
He  was  a  participant  in  all  the  battles  of  the  At- 
lanta campaign,    the   march  to  the  sea,  and  the 


fighting  through  the  Carolinas  on  the  way  to 
Richmond.  In  all  this  service  he  was  so  fortunate 
as  to  escape  any  wounds  or  serious  illness,  and  is 
to-day  a  sound  and  admirable  specimen  of  ph>-si- 
cal  manhood.  His  other  qualities  are  in  keeping, 
for  he  is  a  whole-souled,  genial  gentleman,  and  a 
most  industrious  and  useful  citizen. 

Returning  to  Wheaton  at  the  close  of  the  Civil 
War,  Mr.  Compton  re.sumed  farm  labor  for  a  year, 
and  then  took  up  building  with  Adin  Childs, 
an  early  resident  of  Wheaton  and  former  ac- 
tive builder,  now  retired.  On  the  3d  of  June, 
1868,  he  married  a  daughter  of  Mr.  Childs, 
Miss  Tirzah,  and  about  the  same  time  he  began 
building  on  his  own  account.  He  has  engaged 
largely  in  building  houses  for  sale,  finding  a 
ready  market  for  his  handiwork,  and  has  built, 
altogether,  more  than  one  hundred  houses.  In 
1889  he  built  the  handsome  residence  which  he 
occupies,  at  the  northwest  corner  of  West  and 
Franklin  Streets,  an  ornament  to  the  city  and  one 
of  the  best  in  it.  Besides  building  extensively 
for  himself  he  has  constructed  many  houses  for 
others. 

While  leading  a  very  busy  life,  Mr.  Compton 
has  not  had  time  or  inclination  to  meddle  with 
public  concerns,  though  he  has  endeavored  to 
fulfill  the  duties  of  a  patriotic  citizen.  He  ad- 
heres to  the  Democratic  party  in  matters  of  po- 
litical principle,  but  has  never  sought  to  secure 
an  office  or  a  pension.  He  is  not  identified  with 
associations  of  any  nature.  His  family  includes 
six  daughters,  named,  respectively:  Sarah,  Mary, 
Jessie,  Alice,  Isidore  and  Tirzah. 


-^]. 


"S) 


^+^ 


r=i 


[=^ 


0R.  CHARLES  SYLVESTER  OWEN,  a. suc- 
cessful and  popular  physician  of  Wheaton, 
was  born  in  Marion,  Ohio,  July  29,  1858, 
and  is  the  only  son  of  Perry  B.  and  Mar\-  E. 
Owen,  of  Ohio  birth.  His  grandfather,  Charles 
Owen,  was  born  in  Fairfield  County,  Ohio,  and 
settled  on  a  farm  near  Marion,  where  he  died  in 
1877,  in  his  seventy -fifth  year.  His  wife,  Esther 
Brashares,  was  of  the  same  nativity,  and  died  in 


PORTRAIT  AND  HIOGRAI'HICAL   RKCORD. 


1SS4.  aj;c<.l  scvcnty-><ix  \car>.      The  tamilv  is  sup 
postd  to  Ik:  (lcscende<l  from  Welsh    aiiix-stors  ami 
probably    migrated    from  Peimsylvania  to   Ohio. 
Charles    and    Ksthcr   Owen    were  the  parents  of 
eight  children,  Perry  B.   l>cing  the  second. 

The  last-name<l  was  bom  in  Fairfield  County. 
Ohio,  in  iS'^o.  and  was  but  a  small  child  when 
his  parents  movetl  to  Marion.  He  graduate*!  at 
the  Ohio  Wesleyan  University,  at  Delaware,  in 
1854.  and  soon  after  purchase<l  a  tract  of  timl)er- 
land  in  Hardin  County,  and  l)egan  the  oix.-rati(in 
of  a  sawmill  and  farm.  In  1855.  he  married  Ma 
ry  E.,  daughter  of  .Mahlon  and  Cynthia  Warner. 
He  was  cut  i>ff  in  the  midst  of  an  active  and  useful 
life  in  1869,  at  the  age  of  thirty-nine  years,  leav- 
ing two  children.  Florence  I.,  the  eldest,  is  the 
wife  of  Roljcrt  F.  Klliott,  a  fanner  at  Clait)<)nie. 
Union  County.  Ohio. 

Dr.  Owen  was  reareti  by  his  paternal  graiidpar 
ents.  his  father  having  died  when  he  was  eleven 
years  old.  He  remained  on  the  farm  until  nine- 
teen years  old,  in  the  mean  time  gaining  such 
mental  instruction  as  the  ctjuntry  school  afforded. 
Entering  Ohio  Wesleyan  University  in  the  spring 
ofiSSj.  he  continued  the  course  until  Sei)teniber, 
1880.  He  then  liegan  reading  nie<iicine  with  Dr. 
E.  Beckwith.  at  Delaware.  Ohio,  and  continued 
one  year.  In  the  fall  of  1S81.  he  went  to  Chi- 
cago and  enlere<i  the  Homeopathic  Medical  Col- 
lege of  that  city,  graduating  in  March.  1883. 
His  application  is  demonstrate*!  by  the  fact  that 
he  pa.ssed  the  competitive  examination  for  resi- 
dent physician  of  the  hospital  and  dispensary  con- 
necte«l  with  that  institution,  and  fillet!  the  posi- 
tion for  a  year. 

In  May.  1884.  Dr.  Owen  was  married  to  Miss 
Mary  L.  Murray,  a  native  of  Ohio,  and  daughter 
of  Simon  and  Ruth  (Cochran)  Murray,  of  Irish 
descent.  After  an  extendetl  wedding  trip,  he 
spent  the  following  winter  in  practice  at  Watseka, 
III. 

In  April,  1885.  the  Doctor  settle!  in  Wheaton. 
where  he  has  continued  to  reside  and  practice  his 
profession  ever  since.  For  four  years  he  wa.s  as 
sociated  with  Dr.  L.  Pratt,  a  prominent  physician 
of  the  place,  and  sincx-  the  removal  of  the  latter 
to    California  has   cmtiiuK-^l     nloiu-       Ht-    1-  the 


onlv  hoineopatliic  pin  siciaii  111  the  cilx  ,  ami  lia.-5 
attaiue<!  an  extensi\e  and  lucrative  pr-ictice.  He 
is  a  memlKrr  of  the  American  Institute  of  Home 
opathy,  and  the  Illinois  IIomeojKithic  Me<!ii-nl  As- 
so«.'iati<in,  ami,  witli  his  wife,  is  a  comnninicant  of 
the  Methodist  Churcli.  He  is  a  meml>er  of  the 
Ma.sonic  order,  and  in  political  sentiment  sympa- 
thizes with  the  Dennxratic  party,  though  intle- 
jiendeiit  in  action.  Two  children  were  given  to 
Dr.  and  Mrs.  Owen,  !H)th  now  decea-sed.  They 
occupy  a  hand.sonie  and  pleas;uit  home  on  Main 
Street,  adjoining  the  public  library. 


^-^l 


-^) 


I  i;WlS  CHARUKS  STOVKR.  Hx-Trcasurer 
liL  "f  DuPage  County,  has  been  a  resident  here 
I  J  since  he  was  eleven  years  old.  and  is  a  popular 
and  useful  citizen.  He  is  descended  from  the 
German  .stock  of  eastern  Peimsylvania.  and  was 
Iwni  in  Jack.son.  York  County,  that  .State,  on  the 
7th  of  October.  1.S42.  His  parents.  Jo.scph  and 
Sarah  Stover,  are  natives  of  the  same  township, 
and  now  reside  at  Glen  Ellyn.  this  county.  His 
grandfather.  Michael  Stover,  was  born  on  the 
same  fann  as  the  son  and  grandson,  and  was  the 
son  of  a  native  of  the  same  towusliip.  if  not  of  the 
same  farm.  All  these  ancestors  were  farmers. 
Sarah,  wife  of  Joseph  Stover,  is  the  daughter  of 
Michael  and  I'ollv  Mvers,  all  l)eing  natives  of  the 
same  township.  Tlie  males  of  the  Myers  family 
were  all  millers,  Mrs.  Stover  having  five  brothers 
who  ojx-rateil  mills  at  the  s;une  time. 

In  March.  1854.  Joseph  .Stover  came  West  and 
settleil  on  a  farm  in  Milton  Township,  three  miles 
south  of  Glen  Ellyn,  removing  thence  when  old 
age  comjx'l!e<l  him  to  retire,  in  iS.S4,  to  the  vil- 
lage where  he  now  resides,  as  before  notetl.  He 
still  retains  the  farm.  Most  of  his  famil>-  is  as- 
s<x-iatc<!  with  the  Congregational  Church.  One 
son.  Rev.  Wesley  Myers  Stover,  is  a  niis.sionar> 
attache<l  to  the  West  Central  African  mission  of 
that  sect,  where  he  has  I>een  stalionetl  since  iK«i. 
His  wife  is  a  daughter  of  the  late  Horace  Dodge,  a 
very  worthy  jiioneer  of  DuPage  Cnuutv-. 

I.      C    Sliiver   is   the    eldest    <if   s<.\  en    chiUlren 


214 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


born  to  his  parents,  and  passed  his  early  years  on 
a  farm,  receiving  his  education  in  the  common 
schools.       In    August,    1862,    before   completing 
the  twentieth  year  of  his  age,  he  enlisted  in  Com- 
pany F,  One  Hundred  and  Fifth  Illinois  Infantry, 
under  Capt.  Seth  F.  Daniels  (afterward  County 
Jiidge  of  DuPage  County,  and  now  a  resident  of 
California),  and  served  in  the  Western  Army  un- 
til December,  1863.     He  was  discharged  for  total 
disability,  having  lost  both  legs  in  a  railroad  ac- 
cident, while  in  transit  from  one  field  of  duty  to 
another.    Thus  all  his  ambition  for  militan-  honor 
was  disappointed,   and  his  prospects  in  life  dark- 
ened; however,   like  a  brave  soldier,  he  did  not 
repine,  but  took  up  the  burden  of  civil  life  as  best 
he   could.     For   a   time   he   was  employed  in  a 
store  at  Lisle  Station,  and  in  1873  he  was  elected 
County  Trea.surer,  filling   that   position  continu- 
ously for  thirteen  years,  more  than  twice  as  long 
as  any  other  ever  held  that  office,  a  fitting  testi- 
monial to  his  ability  and  faithfulness.     He  had 
previously  served  as  Tax  Collector  in  York  Town- 
ship, and  has  fulfilled  the  duties  of  the  same  posi- 
tion for  two  terms  in  the  city  of  Wheaton,  once 
by  election,  and  once  as  Deputy  for  another  who 
could  not  devote  his  time  to  it.      In  every  posi- 
tion he  has  been  called  upon  to  fill  by  his  com- 
patriots, he  has  fully  ju.stified  the  confidence  re- 
posed in  him. 

In  political  matters,  Mr.  Stover  adheres  to  the 
Republican  party,  as  the  exponent  of  the  best 
and  most  progressive  principles  of  government, 
and  takes  a  lively  interest  in  all  that  concerns  the 
public  welfare.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Grand 
Army  of  the  Republic  and  a  Royal  Arch  Mason, 
and  affiliates  with  the  Baptist  Church,  of  which 
his  wife  is  an  active  member. 

In  iMarch,  1876,  Mr.  Stover  married  Mrs.  Jane 
Ann,  widow  of  Henn,-  Durand,  and  daughter  of 
Bernard  and  Angeline  (Whittemore)  Eggleston. 
Mrs.  Stover  is  a  native  of  Jackson,  Mich.,  and 
the  names  of  her  parents  are  among  the  old- 
est and  best  of  New  England.  Her  daughter, 
Miss  Nettie  Durand,  completes  the  famih-  of  Mr. 
Stover. 

A  genial,  modest  gentleman,  who  strives  to 
keep  abreast  of  the  times,  Mr.  Stover  is  a  citizen 


worthy  of  this  modest  mention  in  the  record  of 
his  home  county.  He  occupies  a  pleasant  home 
on  the  corner  of  Hale  and  Seminary  Streets  in 
Wheaton,  as  well  as  a  warm  place  in  the  esteem 
of  his  fellow-citizens. 


<^^ 


^-^ 


-S) 


HOMAS  MYRICK  HULL,  the  popular  ex- 
Recorder   and   Circuit   Court   Clerk  of  Du- 
Page County ,  is  a  scion  of  an  old  New  York 
family    of    English    lineage.      His    great-great- 
grandfather  came   from  England  and   settled   at 
Hudson,    N.    Y.     A   brother    who    accompanied 
him  went  elsewhere,  and  all  trace  of  him  is  lost 
to  this  branch   of  the    family.      Tideman    Hull, 
born  at  Hudson,  N.  Y.,  operated  a  paper-mill  on 
the  Hudson,  and  when  his  son  George  was  twelve 
years  old,  the  latter  was  often  sent  out  on  a  week's 
trip  alone,  to  gather  rags  for  comsumption  in  the 
mill.     Tideman  Hull  and  his  wife,   Ann   Haight, 
were  strict  Quakers.     Their  son   George  married 
Sally  Ann,  daughter  of  Joseph  and  Eunice  Barn- 
ard.    The  Barnards  were  of  Welsh  blood,   while 
Eunice,  wife  of  Joseph  Barnard,  was  the  daughter 
of  Capt.  Thomas  My  rick,  of  English  descent,  who 
lo.st  his  life  in  whaling  on  the  ship  which  he  com- 
manded. 

George  Hull  was  probably  born  at  Hudson  or 
Poughkeepsie,  or  wherever  it  was  that  his  father 
operated  the  paper-mill.  George  became  a  flour- 
miller,  and  built  the  finst  gristmill  in  Cortland 
County,  N.  Y.,  whither  he  went  at  the  age  of 
twenty-two  years,  about  1808.  He  took  up  land 
there,  and  beside  milling  carried  on  farming  op- 
erations for  nearly  half  a  centurj-  in  the  town  of 
Truxton.  In  1856  he  moved  to  DeRuyter,  Mad- 
ison County,  N.  Y.,  and  from  there  to  Oak  Park, 
111.,  in  1885,  dying  soon  after,  at  the  ripe  age  of 
ninety-nine  years  and  nine  months.  He  had  four 
sons  and  five  daughters. 

Edward  H.  Hull,  eldest  child  of  George  Hull, 
was  born  at  Hudson,  N.  Y.,  in  September,  1806, 
and  was  an  infant  when  his  parents  went  to  Trux- 
ton. He  learned  his  father's  trade,  and  followed 
it  several  years  at  Sherman  Hollow,    near  Syra- 


PORTRAIT  AMD  BIOORAPHICAL   KHCUKD. 


J'5 


cuse.  in  the  mean  lina-  pursuing  the  readinR  i^i 
law.  He  liail  previousl>  kept  an  hotel  at  Cariliff 
and  also  at  De  Ruyter.  In  1851  he  went  to  Cali- 
foniia,  bnt  did  not  ind«l>;e  the  univers;il  craze  for 
mining.  He  oi)erated  a  tlourmill  at  San  Jose 
four  years,  and  then  retumetl  to  De  Ruyter,  N.  Y., 
where  he  resume<l  hi.s  law  studies,  and  wa.s  adniit- 
te<l  to  practi'X-  in  1S35.  The  next  year  he  Ix: 
came  a  resident  of  Illinois,  and.  locating  at  Lom- 
bard, engage<l  in  the  practice  of  his  profes-sion  un- 
til his  death,  in  1S77.  He  tilktl  numerous  minor 
official  positions,  and  was  Circuit  Court  Clerk  and 
Rco)rder  for  DuPage  County  from  186S  to  1.S72. 
He  was  a  I)emt)crat  of  the  old  school,  and  wannly 
supported  the  administration  in  the  prosecution 
of  the  war  for  the  pre.stnation  of  the  Union.  On 
account  of  his  marriage  outside  that  sect,  he  was 
expelled  from  the  Quaker  brotherhootl.  but  con- 
tinued to  cherish  .strong  religious  convictions  in 
sympathy  with  its  tenets.  His  wife,  Maria,  .sur- 
vives him,  and  resides  at  Oak  Park.  She  was  ] 
Ixinj  in  Canaan.  Columbia  County,  N.  Y.,  and  is  : 
a  daughter  of  Kamlx.-rt  and  Freelove  (  Ailsworth) 
Yan  Yalkenburg,  of  early  Dutch  ancestry.  Four 
of  her  seven  children  sur\-ive.  and  are  residents 
of  this  vicinity.  The  eldest,  George  Henry,  died 
at  Knglewwxl,  now  part  of  Chicago,  111.  Frank 
resides  at  Wheaton.  Jennie,  widow  of  I.ilierty 
Jones,  is  a  resident  of  Oak  Park,  as  is  al.so  Dehjs. 
The  name  of  the  fourth  heads  this  article.  Charles, 
the  fifth,  died  in  infancy.  DeWitt,  twin  brother 
of  Delos,  diet!  ofdisca.se  contracted  while  serving 
as  a  member  of  the  Fifteenth  New  York  Cavalry, 
in  the  Civil  War. 

Thomas  M.  Hull  was  boni  April  22,  1840,  at 
Fabias,  Oneida  County,  N.  Y..  and  remaine<l 
there  and  at  De  Ruyter  until  he  was  fifteen  years 
old,  attending  the  academy  at  the  latter  i)lace  one 
year  in  that  time.  In  Septenil»er,  1H55,  he  set 
out  alone  to  make  his  way  in  the  new  West.  He 
spent  a  year  at  Litchfield,  111.,  where  he  was  em- 
ployed as  clerk  in  a  general  store,  and  then  re- 
tuniefl  to  De  Ruyter,  and  pursued  his  studies  at 
the  at-ademy  for  another  year.  In  June.  1857. 
he  liecame  a  permanent  resident  of  Illinois,  tak- 
ing up  his  alxxle  at  Lombard.  Here  he  found 
employment  in  a  store  for  some  time,  and  was  for 


M.\  months  a  clerk  in  the  store  of  Potter  Palmer  in 
Chicago,  at  $6  per  week.  As  this  remuneration 
did  not  afford  comfortable  maintenance,  he  re- 
signed, and  soon  after  o]>eni-d  a  nieat-market,  in 
partnership  with  an  elder  brother.  This  market 
was  on  Clark  Street,  where  the  Chicago  postoffict: 
and  custonj  house  now  .stand,  and  was  success- 
fully conducted  alniut  seven  years.  For  two  years 
Mr.  Hull  operated  a  dairy  farm,  but  l»ecomingcon- 
vince<l  that  agriculture  was  not  his  forte,  he  then 
found  employment  with  the  Weeil  Sewing-machine 
Company,  and  was  its  city  manager  at  the  time 
of  the  great  fire,  in  187 1.  He  contiinied  with 
this  concern  until  1876,  the  la.st  three  years  lieing 
.spent  as  its  representative  on  the  road. 

Becoming  interested  in  jxilitics,  our  subject 
took  an  active  part  in  the  campaign  of  1876.  and 
on  its  succe.s.sful  termination  was  offered  the  posi- 
tion of  Deputy  Clerk  of  the  Circuit  Court  of  Du- 
Page  County,  which  he  accepted.  For  four  years 
he  faithfully  discharged  the  duties  devolving  upon 
him.  and  was  chosen  as  principal  in  that  office  at 
the  en.suing  election,  l>eing  reelected  at  the  end  of 
four  years.  He  declined  to  be  again  a  candidate, 
and  on  retiring  from  office  at  the  end  of  twelve 
years  he  ojxrned  a  .set  of  abstract  lKX)ks  for  Du- 
Page  County  at  Wheaton,  and  has  fimnd  a  liveli- 
hinA  in  the  conduct  of  this  bu.sine.ss  ever  since. 
He  is  assisletl  by  his  eldest  son,  who  is  a  partner 
in  the  enterprise.  Their  office  is  near  the  court 
house,  and  was  erected  by  Mr.  Hull  in  1888. 

The  genial  "  Tom,"  as  he  is  known  by  his  as- 
sociates, is  a  man  of  .sterling  qualities.  po.s.ses.se<l  of 
a  magnetism  which  wins  and  retains  friendships, 
and  his  upright  conduct  of  his  official  iluties  and 
private  business  has  not  detracted  from  the  good- 
will which  he  inspires  in  all  with  wIkmu  he  is 
brought  in  contact.  He  has  always  Ikx-u  an  ar- 
dent Republican,  but  conducts  his  campaigns 
without  rancor,  and  holds  an  influential  position 
in  the  l«K-al  councils  of  his  partv .  He  is  Chancel- 
lor Commander  of  Orchid  Ix)dge  No.  331.  K.  P., 
and  attends  the  Congregational  Church,  of  which 
his  wife  is  a  menii)er.  In  1867  he  niarrietl  Miss 
Caroline  C.  Whaples,  a  native  of  Oak  I'ark,  111., 
and  daughter  of  Reulx-n  and  Margaret  iSpitzer) 
Whaples,    early    ri-sidents    of    Oak     Park.      Mr. 


2l6 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


WTiaples  is  a  native  of  Connecticut,  of  English 
descent,  and  his  wife  of  Ohio,  of  German  lineage. 
Three  children  complete  the  family  of  Mr.  Hull, 
namely:  DeWitt  Clinton.  Thomas  R.  and  Myrtle 
Irene. 


"=:• 


■(^■^ 


GlZEL  DORATHY  is  the  well-known  Post- 
Li  master  of  Hinsdale.  He  was  appointed  to 
/  I  this  position  by  President  Harrison  in  1889, 
and  is  still  acceptablj-  filling  the  office.  He  has 
been  prominently  identified  with  the  official  life 
of  this  place,  and  has  been  found  true  to  every 
public  trust  reposed  in  him.  His  life  record  is  as 
follows  : 

A  native  of  the  Empire  State,  Mr.  Dorathy 
was  born  in  Pierrepont,  N.  Y.,  October  19,  1824, 
and  is  a  .son  of  Joseph  and  Jerusha  (Hatch)  Dor- 
athj',  the  former  a  native  of  Massachusetts,  and 
the  latter  of  New  Hampshire.  The  paternal 
grandfather  was  a  sea-faring  man,  but  the  mater- 
nal grandfather  was  a  New  Hampshire  farmer. 
Joseph  Dorathy  became  a  carpenter  and  builder 
in  early  life,  but  afterwards  turned  his  attention 
to  agricultural  pursuits.  He  died  in  New  York, 
in  1854,  at  the  advanced  age  of  eighty-five,  and 
was  still  well  preserved  for  one  of  his  years.  His 
wife  survived  him  about  five  years,  and  was  also 
eighty-five  years  of  age  when  called  to  the  home 
bejond.  This  worthy  couple  became  the  parents 
of  ten  children,  .six  sons  and  four  daughters, 
but  onl>-  three  of  the  lumiber  are  now  living  : 
Charles:  Lucinda,  widow  of  Elisha  Beach,  and  a 
resident  of  California:  and  Azel. 

Our  subject  spent  the  da\s  of  his  boyhood  and 
youth  in  the  State  of  his  nati\-ity,  remaining  on 
the  home  farm  until  sixteen  years  of  age.  He 
displa3"ed  special  aptitude  for  stud}-,  and  when  a 
youth  of  sixteen  began  teaching  school,  which 
profession  he  successfully  followed  for  eleven  sea- 
sons. With  the  capital  he  had  acquired  through 
his  industry  and  economy,  he  then  embarked  in 
general  merchandising  in  the  village  of  Potsdam, 
where  he  remained  until  1853,  when  he  deter- 
mined to  seek  a  home  and  fortune  in  the  West. 
The    following   year   he   located    in  the    rapidly 


growing  city  of  Chicago,  where  he  engaged  in  the 
real-estate  business  until  1876.  That  year  wit- 
nessed his  arrival  in  Hinsdale,  whither  he  re- 
moved on  account  of  ill  health,  and  here  he  has 
made  his  home  continuou.sly  since. 

On  the  24th  of  December,  1852,  Mr.  Dorath}- 
was  united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Miriam  Dewey, 
daughter  of  Chester  Dewey.  Their  oidy  child 
died  in  infancy,  and  Mrs.  Dorathy  pas.sed  away 
October  24,  1870. 

In  his  political  affiliations,  Mr.  Dorathy  is  a 
Republican,  and  has  been  honored  with  a  number 
of  local  offices.  He  has  served  as  Town  Clerk, 
Village  Clerk,  and  has  also  filled  the  office  of 
Police  Magistrate  during  his  residence  in  Hins- 
dale. For  the  past  four  years  he  has  been  the 
efficient  Postmaster.  His  many  excellent  traits 
of  character  have  gained  him  universal  confidence 
and  esteem. 


_=]_ 


"S) 


^-i-^ 


[=^ 


iJl  ARSHALL  B.  LESTER  was  born  on  the 
y  farm  where  he  still  resides,  on  section  9,  Ad- 
(3  dison  township,  DuPage  County,  the  date 
of  his  birth  being  December  8,  1849.  He  comes 
of  an  old  New  England  family  of  Welsh  origin. 
and  his  grandfather,  Edward  Lester,  was  a  native 
of  Long  Island.  The  parents  of  our  subject  were 
Marshall  N.  and  Levantia  N.  (Barnum)  Lester. 
The  father  was  born  in  Clinton  County,  N.  Y., 
in  1810,  and  the  mother,  a  distant  relative  of  P. 
T.  Barnum,  the  showman,  was  born  in  Shoreham, 
Vt..  in  1817,  and  was  of  English  descent.  Her 
father,  Cyrus  Barnum,  was  also  a  native  of  the 
Green  Mountain  State,  and  became  one  of  the 
pioneers  of  DuPage  County  in  1837.  His  broth- 
er, Truman  Barnum,  graded  six  miles  of  the  first 
railroad  built  out  of  Chicago.  The  brothers  died 
within  two  daj-sof  each  other,  of  cholera,  in  1848. 
The  paternal  grandfather  of  M.  B.  Lester  came 
to  DuPage  County  in  1835,  and  took  up  land 
from  the  Government  in  what  is  itow  Addison 
Township,  but  at  that  time  the  land  was  unsur- 
veyed.  His  son  John  had  come  to  the  county  the 
previous  year  and  had  made  a  claim  in  Addison 


K)RTkA'T    WTi   r.K.r.K  M'HICAI,    RECORD. 


'Ill    >    iiiH-    n 


Township.      Tin.    i.itlicr  oi    <<ur    ^u 
DuPagc  County  in  iSj^s,  in  his  twenty  fifth  year.    , 
and  also  socurtni  Govcninient  lan«l  before  it  was 
snneyetl.     Here  he  marrietl  Miss  Harnnm  in  1840, 
and  the  yonn^  oniple  iKr^an  their  <l<micstic  life 
ujxin  the  (linn  which  is  now  the  home  <if  our  sub- 
ject.    A  small  block  housi-  was  built,   and  while 
the  wife  caretl  for  the  little  home  the  husband  en 
^ageil  in    the  cultivation  of  the  fields.      As  the 
years  passe<l  his  laUus  made  the  farm  one  of  the 
best  in  the  county,  and  upon    it   he  continued  to 
reside  until  his  death,  which  occurred  in  his  eigh- 
tieth year.      He  was  a  Republican  in  jKditics.  and 
was  a  prominent  and  influential  citi/en.      His  wife 
passetl  away   in    1S76.   at   the  age  of  fifty-nine. 
They  had  a  family  of  eight  children,    five  sons 
and   three  daughters,    of  whom    our    subject    is 
fourth  in  order  of  birth. 

M.  H.  Lester  was  Ixjm  in  the  block  house 
which  was  the  pioneer  home  of  the  family,  and 
the  days  of  his  boyhood  and  youth  were  spent  in 
work  and  pla\  ujkiu  the  farm,  to  the  cultivation 
of  which  he  has  devotetl  his  manluKKl's  lal>ors. 
In  early  life  he  conned  his  lessons  in  the  district 
schools,  but  afterwards  pursuetl  his  studies  in  t!;e 
schools  of  Wheaton.  Elgin  and  Dixon.  Later  he 
engage<l  in  teaching  school,  being  thus  employed 
for  eight  terms  in  DuPage  County.  In  his  work 
as  an  instnictor  he  was  very  suctx-ssful. 

In  1880.  in  Addison  Township.  Mr.  I^ester  mar- 
ried Haltie  C  I^ike  Her  parents  were  natives 
of  England.  She  died,  leaving  a  daughter.  Leva 
C.  and  Mr.  Lester  has  been  again  married,  his 
sccoiul  union  lH.-ing  with  Eliza  M.  IKihle.  a  native 
of  Cook  County  .  l>oni  Auiiust  ig.  i,S46  They 
have  one  child,  Elma. 

Mr  Lester,  who  is  tme  of  the  leading  Republi- 
cans of  this  community,  is  a  stalwart  advix-ate  of 
the  principles  of  the  party,  and  was  secretary  of 
the  Republican  Club.  He  is  now  serving  .as  I'osl- 
ma.ster  of  Salt  Creek.  Socially,  he  is  connecte<l 
with  Itasca  Lodge  No.  764.  M.  \V.  A.,  of  which 
he  is  Commander.  He  has  lH.-t.11  a  promiiunt  and 
j)rogre>.sive  citizen, who  has  nianifestecl  commend- 
able interest  in  everything  pertaining  to  the  wcl 
fare  ofthi  ■  'ne  all  in  hi>  i>«>w 

erforit-sii;  .rrying  on  general 


i.iiiniui,    i>'iher  husiiu --  ■.■i^i»>;^  .....^    .~...,..v  , 
his  time  and  attention.      In  iSHS.  he  U-gaii  deal 
ing  in  live  st<K-k,  an  I  n  tw  makes  extensi\e  ship 
ments.       In    i.Sy;    he   shipin:!    seventy  two  car 
loads  to  Chicago.      In  connection  wit  1  his  brother. 
Cyrus  B.,  he  was  for  tliret:  years  jiroprictor  of  a 
meat  market  in  Itasca.      His   fann  i-omprisi-s  one 
liundre<l  and  st-venty -seven  acresof  rich  land,  and 
upon   it  are  two  go<xl  residencv>  and  all  the  im- 
provements.   acix-ss<  ries    and    conveniences  of  a 
model  fann.      Mr.  I^-ster  is  a  public-spirited  and 
progressive    man,  an  enterprising  farmer  and    a 
valued  citizen,   whose  hearty   supjjort  and  co  <jp- 
eration    have    l>c-en    imixirtanl   factors  in  the  up- 
building of  the  community. 


-^-f^l 


"SI 


r^ROF.  R.  T.  MORGAN.  A.  M..  is  Superin 
L/  tcndent  of  Public  Instruction  of  DuPage 
\S)  County,  and  makes  his  home  in  Wheaton. 
Eor  nearly  a-quarter  of  a  centnr\  he  has  been 
identified  with  Wheaton  College,  and  has  been  a 
great  worker  in  the  cause  of  education.  His  rela- 
tions with  the  college  have  lietn  Ixith  as  student 
and  teacher,  and  there  arc  few  who  have  Ixrtn 
more  actively  interested  in  promoting  her  welfare 
than  he. 

The  birth  of  Prof.  Morgan  i>ccurred  in  Camp- 
ton  TowiLship.  Kane  County.  III.,  May  9.  1844. 
His  father  was  Elijah  Morgan,  who  wa-<.  Ixim  in 
Randolph,  Vt.  His  mother  was  in  her  maiden- 
IuhkI  Miss  Laura  Ward,  and  was  l>orn  near  Hata- 
tavia,  N.  V.  Both  parents  came  to  Illinois  when 
•luite  young,  and  were  married  in  this  State. 
Their  union  was  bles.se<l  by  two  children,  but  our 
subject  was  the  only  one  to  grow  t«>  adult  years. 
His  childhoixl  was  pas.se<l  in  Kane  County  until 
his  fourteenth  year,  when  he  went  to  Iowa  and 
livetl  with  his  grandfather  Ward  on  his  farm  for 
three  years.  Returning  t«)  Illinois,  he  then  en- 
gaged to  work  for  his  uncle.  David  McKee,  on 
his  farm  in  DuPage  County.  He  stay etl  at  this 
place  until  fall,  when  he  had  his  name  enrolled 
as  a  student  of  Wheaton  College,  and  pursuetl 
the  branches  of  the  general  and  classical  course 


2l8 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


during  the  winter.  The  succeeding  .summer  he 
worked  on  a  farm,  and  in  the  fall  again  entered 
college. 

The  same  fall  that  the  Professor  entered  col- 
lege for  his  second  year,  the  word  came  from  the 
front  of  battle  that  more  volunteers  were  needed. 
On  the  3d  of  December,  1863,  he  therefore  en- 
listed in  Companj-  H,  Seventeenth  Illinois  Cav- 
alry, and  was  mustered  into  .ser\-ice  at  St.  Charles, 
111.  He  was  not  required  to  do  active  service 
until  the  following  spring,  but  was  then  engaged 
in  general  bushwhacking  and  in  following  up  Gen. 
Price  in  Missouri.  His  company  was  then  or- 
dered to  the  mountains  to  subdue  the  Indians,  who 
had  become  troublesome,  as  they  were  adroitly 
taking  advantage  of  the  civil  contest  to  annoy 
and  devastate  the  farms  of  the  we.stern  settlers. 
The  company  rode  over  the  country  traversed  by 
the  Smoky  Hill  Fork  River,  and  through  we.stern 
Kansas  and  Colorado.  They  received  their  final 
discharge  at  Ft.  Leavenworth,  Kan.,  December 
15,  1865. 

The  evening  of  New  Year's  Day,  1866,  found 
Prof.  Morgan  once  more  at  home,  and  just  a  week 
later  he  was  for  the  third  time  numbered  among 
the  pupils  of  Wheaton  College,  and  most  of  the 
time  since  then  he  has  been  coimected  in  some 
capacity  with  the  institution.  He  graduated  from 
Wheaton  with  the  degree  of  A.  B.  in  the  Class  of 
'74.  For  three  years  he  taught  school  in  Foun- 
taindale,  Ogle  County,  and  in  1877  was  called  to 
the  chair  of  natural  science,  in  his  alma  mater. 
For  nine  successive  years  he  was  professor  of  that 
department,  and  then  resigned  to  take  the  place 
of  County  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction. 

In  1 88 1,  was  celebrated  the  marriage  of  Prof. 
Morgan  and  Miss  Hattie  Gurnea,  of  Mt.  Palatine, 
111.  Of  their  happy  union  four  children  have 
been  born,  and  three  of  the  number  are  living. 
In  order  of  birth  they  are  as  follows:  George  G., 
James  W.  (deceased),  Royal  Tucker  and  Lewis 
V.  Mrs.  Morgan  is  a  lad}-  of  superior  education 
and  culture,  and  with  her  husband  numbers  a 
host  of  friends  in  Wheaton.  On  account  of  the 
Professor's  connection  with  the  schools,  he  is 
known  far  and  wide,  and  his  loyal  pupils  can  be 
found  in  all  parts  of  the  State.      His  ability  as  an 


educator  places  him  without  question  among  the 
first  teachers  and  those  interested  in  the  instruc- 
tion of  the  young.  His  old  army  comrades  have 
ever  held  a  warm  place  in  his  heart,  and  he  is  a 
member  of  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic. 

HERMAN  H.  FRANZEN,  dealer  in  lumber, 
feed  and  flour,  and  proprietor  of  an  elevator 
in  Itasca,  is  recognized  as  one  of  the  lead- 
ing business  men  of  this  thriving  little  town,  and 
one  of  its  prominent  citizens.  He  is  numbered 
among  the  native  sons  of  DuPage  County,  for  his 
birth  occurred  in  Bensenville,  Addison  Town- 
ship, on  the  3d  of  September,  1868.  He  is  the 
youngest  child  of  J.  H.  and  Catherine  Franzen, 
who  are  mentioned  on  another  page  of  this  work, 
and  is  a  worthy  representative  of  one  of  the  early 
families  of  the  county. 

Our  subject  began  his  education  in  the  district 
schools,  and  after  mastering  the  common  branches 
of  learning  there  taught,  he  became  a  student  in 
Bryant  &  Stratton's  Commercial  College,  of  Chi- 
cago, in  which  he  pursued  a  business  course, 
which  fitted  him  for  the  practical  and  responsible 
duties  of  life.  After  his  education  was  completed, 
he  engaged  in  business  with  his  brother  for  a 
year,  and  on  the  expiration  of  that  period  he 
embarked  in  his  present  line  of  business,  in  1888 
buying  out  L.  F.  Magers.  He  has  an  elevator 
at  this  place,  and  deals  in  lumber,  feed  and  flour. 

An  important  event  in  the  life  of  Mr.  Franzen 
occurred  the  .same  year — his  marriage  with  Miss 
Lizzie  Heine,  the  accomplished  daughter  of  A.  H. 
Heine,  of  Cook  Count}-.  She  was  born  in  Leyden 
Township,  that  county,  and  there  spent  the  days 
of  her  girlhood.  One  son  graces  the  union  of  the 
young  couj'le,  Elmer,  who  was  born  in  1891. 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Franzen  are  well-known  young 
people  of  this  comraunit}-,  who  in  social  circles 
hold  an  enviable  position.  They  have  a  large 
circle  of  friends  and  acquaintances,  who  highly 
esteem  them.  With  the  Evangelical  Church  they 
hold  membership.  Mr.  Franzen  exercises  his 
right  of  franchise  in  support  of  the   Republican 


I'OKTRAIT  AND  HIOGRAPHICAI.    RECORD. 


119 


I>art\  .  All  t;iilcr]>riMiij;,  cm;r^;clic  ami  allll>ltlllU^ 
younjj  mail,  he  lia.s  alri-ady  wmian  ciivialilc  plai-c 
ill  buMticss  circles,  and  hi>  \>asl  recurd  artnics 
well  for  his  succt:s.s  in  tlie  future. 


Q  I  )RGIi:  IH'RNHLL.  wh«.  resides  on  .section 
l_  ^.  Milton  Towiishij).  is  a  native  of  Illiniii>. 
y^  iKirii  ill  Kane  County.  June  2,  1.S51.  His 
parents.  William  and  Martha  1  House)  Puniell, 
were  l>oth  natives  of  Sonier>et.shire.  lui^lnnd. 
The  father  reveiveil  a  lilx.*ral  etiucatioii,  and  for 
several  years  was  a  book-keeper  for  a  c<jal  «)ni- 
pany  in  his  native  land.  In  N<ivenil»er,  i.s.^S.ht.- 
iuarrie<l  Martha  House,  and  in  i><5o  they  emi- 
grated to  tl>e  I'niteil  States  and  came  direct  to 
Illinois.  \  They  first  located  in  Ihil'age  C<>unt>  . 
where  they  have  since  resided,  with  the  cxivplion 
of  one  year  spent  in  Kane  County.  They  arc 
still  liviii}{  in  Winfield  Township,  heat  theajjeof 
seventy -six  years,  and  she  at  the  age  of  seventy - 
seven.  In  1888,  they  celebrated  their  golden 
wedding.  To  them  were  born  ten  children,  but 
two  diet!  while  young  in  the  Old  Ci>niitr\  ;m.I 
eight  are  living  at  this  writing. 

George  I'urnell  is  the  sixth  in  uriicr  dI"  lurlli 
and  the  first  one  born  in  America.  His  educa- 
tion was  received  in  the  common  schools,  and  at 
twenty  years  of  age  he  enteretl  the  ser\ice  of  the 
Chicago  &  Northwesleni  Railroad  Company  as  a 
brakeman  on  a  freight  train,  but  in  a  few  years 
was  promote<l  to  lie  ctmductor  of  a  freight  train: 
later  he  was  made  cxjiiductor  on  a  pxs.seiiger  train, 
and  ser\cd  in  all  aUjut  fourteen  years.  He  then 
al>andoiie<l  that  work  in  order  to  devote  his  time 
anil  attention  to  other  pursuits. 

In  the  spring  of  1880  Mr.  Purnell  purcha.sed  a 
farm  comprising  one  liniidre<l  and  three  acres  of 
land  aljout  half  a  mile  north  of  Wheattm.  where 
he  in>w  resides.  Some  time  later  he  l>egaii  its 
cultivation,  in  connection  with  dairying.  The  lat- 
ter business  has  «xvupie<.l  most  of  his  time,  and  by 
strict  attention  to  the  wants  of  his  customers  he 
hasachicve«l  sutx-vss.  and  has  recentlv-  retire<l  from 
the  business  to  enjoy  a  season  of  welleariu-vl  rest 


On  the  i;lliof  April,  iSHi>.  .Mr.  I'unicll  mar- 
rie<l  .Miss  Dora  Sprout,  a  native  of  .Milto.i  Town- 
ship, and  a  daughter  of  Alexander  and  Anna 
(Fr\  I. Sprout  Her  parents  are  l»»lh  natives  of 
Sandusky  Couiit>  ,( )liio,  and  were  among  the  early 
settlers  uf  I)uPage  County,  but  they  now  reside 
in  Fillmore  County.  Neb.  Their  family  coiisisle«l 
of  four  s4ins  and  eight  daughters,  but  only  seven 
of  the  iiuinlier  are  living.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Puniell 
have  two  sons:  Clareiiix-  (ieorge,  Uirn  March  7. 
l.SSi,  and  RaMiioinl  Carlisk-.  iMirii  Aiisjiist  if>. 
1891. 

.Our  subjivl  aixl  Ins  wile  alleiid  llic  .Nklliodist 
l';i)isct>pal  Church,  and  contribute  lil>erally  to  its 
support.  Mr.  Puniell  is  a  public-.spiritcd  man, 
who  takes  an  active  interest  in  ever\thing  cjilcu- 
lated  to  prove  of  ln-iiefit  to  the  community.  He 
has  been  cjiUed  ujxni  to  fill  the  oflice  of  Highway 
Comini.ssioiier,  and  still  <Kxnipies  that  i>osition. 
His  long  residence  in  this  county  has  made  him 
well  known,  and  his  well-spent  life  has  won  him 
high  regard. 


-S) 


#-^ 


1^ 


l=- 


Gl'.lRHK  WAl.KKR,  of  Hiiisilale,  is  num- 
/  1  l)crc<l  among  the  earlv  settlers  of  l)u- 
/  I  Page  Count.v.  For  many  years  he  was 
connected  with  its  agricultural  interests,  but  is 
now  living  a  retired  life.  He  claims  \'ernioiit  as 
the  State  of  his  nativity,  his  birth  having  oc- 
curred in  Ludlow,  Windsor  County,  on  the  6th 
of  Septenil>er.  1824.  His  grandfather,  I.awst^m 
Walker,  was  a  native  of  Mass;ichusetts,  and 
comes  of  an  old  New  Ivngland  family,  which  in 
the  Colonial  days  was  founded  in  .\nierii'a.  Jo- 
siah  Walker,  the  father,  was  bom  in  Hopkinton. 
Ma.ss. .  and,  removing  to  the  Green  Mtmntain 
State,  iiiarrie<l  ,S<iphia  Pettigrew.  wlm  was  Ixirn 
in  Uudlow,  \'t.,  and  was  a  daughter  of  Andrew 
Pettigrew.  Her  father  w.is  also  a  native  of  that 
State  and  was  a  niaiiufacturer  of  starch,  saieratus 
and  staves.  He  l)elonge«l  to  the  liaptist  Church. 
Josiah  Walker  followetl  farming  until  his  death, 
which  occ»irre<l  in  Ludlow.  March  ;.v  1X4(1,  at 
the  age  of  fiftv    tliifi-  \cais     Hi-,  wife  >ur\  i\  ol  him 


2  20 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


until  1875,  and  passed  away  onl.v  a  few  days  pre- 
vious to  her  eightieth  birthday.  He  was  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Methodist  Church,  and  she  belonged 
to  the  Baptist  Church.  Both  were  people  of 
sterling  worth,  possessed  of  many  excellencies  of 
character.  In  their  family  were  nine  children,  of 
whom  five  are  now  living,  namely:  Asenath,  wife 
of  Elisha  Garfield,  of  Stockton,  Kan.;  Polly, 
widow  of  Austin  Adams,  and  a  resident  of  wes- 
tern Vermont;  Rosalinda,  wife  of  Douglas  Esta- 
brook,  of  Norfolk,  Neb.;  Alfred,  of  this  sketch; 
and  Perr>-,  of  Platt.smouth,  Neb. 

Our  subject  was  reared  upon  his  father's  farm, 
remaining  at  home  until  nineteen  years  of  age, 
when  he  determined  to  earn  his  own  livelihood, 
and  went  to  Boston,  where  he  worked  in  a  car 
shop  for  two  >ears.  He  then  resumed  farming, 
and  purcha.sed  the  interest  of  the  other  heirs  in 
the  old  homestead,  upon  which  he  lived  until  his 
removal  westward.  It  was  in  1854  that  he  came 
to  Illinois  and  located  on  a  farm  in  DuPage 
County,  buying  the  land  upon  which  Fullers- 
burg  and  Hin.sdale  now  stand.  His  fir.st  pur- 
chase comprised  over  two  hundred  acres,  to 
which  he  afterward  added  considerable  tracts. 
For  this  he  paid  $24  per  acre,  but  some  of  it  is 
now  worth  several  thousand  dollars  per  acre. 

An  important  event  in  the  life  of  Mr.  Walker 
occurred  March  30,  1847,  when  was  celebrated 
his  marriage  with  Miss  Fannie  M.  Hopkins,  a 
daughter  of  David  and  Amanda  (Andrus)  Hop- 
kins, natives  of  Vermont.  Four  children  were 
born  of  their  union,  but  the  eldest  and  youngest, 
Lincoln  and  Agnes,  are  now  deceased.  Clifford 
married  Miss  Nellie  Stewart,  and  they  have  two 
children,  Alfred  Stewart  and  Fannie  Hopkins. 
Lillian  is  the  wife  of  Frank  L.  Wentworth,  a  rela- 
tive of  John  Wentworth.  They  have  three 
daughters:  Daisy  Louise,  Amy  Harriet  and  Fan- 
nie Lillian.  The  parents  of  Mrs.  Walker  were 
natives  of  \'erniont,  and  her  mother  was  of 
Welsh  descent.  One  of  her  father's  ancestors, 
Stephen  Hopkins,  was  a  signer  of  the  Declaration 
of  Independence.  In  the  Hopkins  family  were 
seven  sons  and  seven  daughters,  all  of  whom 
grew  to  mature  years.  The  father  was  an  exten- 
sive farmer  and   .stock-raiser,    and   devoted    his 


energies  to  that  business  during  the  summer 
months,  while  in  the  winter  season  he  engaged 
in  teaching.  He  died  March  30,  1849,  ^t  the 
age  of  sixty-one  years,  and  his  wife,  who  was 
born  August  30,  1792,  was  called  to  her  final 
home  March  31,  1849.  They  were  members  of 
the  Congregational  Church.  Only  one  .son  and 
two  daughters  of  their  family  are  now  living. 

In  his  political  views,  Mr.  Walker  was  for- 
merly a  Republican,  but  now  affiliates  with  the 
Democracy.  His  wife,  a  most  estimable  lady,  is 
a  member  of  the  Congregational  Church.  He 
still  owns  two  hinidred  and  thirty-seven  acres  of 
land  in  this  county,  of  which  sixty-.seven  acres 
are  within  the  corporation  limits  of  Hinsdale. 
He  made  a  judicious  investment  in  purchasing 
this  propert\-,  and  by  the  .steady  rise  in  value  of 
real  estate  in  this  locality,  and  by  his  well-di- 
rected and  enterprising  efforts,  he  has  become 
one  of  the  substantial  citizens  of  DuPage  County. 


^+^ 


[3_ 


-^ 


[~  RANK  HULL,  Deputy  Circuit  Clerk  and  Re- 
rft  corder  of  DuPage  Countj-,  is  among  the  old- 
I  est  in  ser\-ice  and  most  popular  of  the  coun- 
ty officials.  He  was  born  in  Truxton,  N.  Y., 
May  21,  1835.  His  genealogy  will  be  found  in 
coiuiection  with  the  biography  of  T.  M.  Hull, 
elsewhere  in  this  work.  His  jouth  was  passed 
at  Cardiff  and  De  Ruyter,  N.  Y. ,  his  education  be- 
ing completed  at  a  seminary^  in  the  latter  place. 

In  September,  1851 ,  he  came  to  Lombard  (then 
known  as  Babcock's  Grove),  in  this  county,  with 
his  uncle,  J.  B.  Hull,  with  whom  he  remained 
seven  years  as  his  assistant  in  conducting  a 
store.  For  two  years  subsequently  he  was  em- 
ploj-ed  as  clerk  in  a  commission  house  in  Chicago, 
and  in  the  sj5Hng  of  i860  he  went  to  Har\-ard 
Junction,  111.,  as  ticket  agent  for  the  Chicago  & 
Northwestern  Railway  Company.  He  remained 
there  about  a  year  and  a-half,  enlisting  in  Sep- 
tember, 1 86 1,  for  three  years'  sendee  in  Company 
A,  Eighth  Illinois  Cavalrj-.  He  participated  in 
ever\-  engagement  and  skirmish  of  the  regiment, 
numbering    about  one    hundred    and    sixtj-five 


OCOTK^^ 


^^^'Qts 


MRS.N.CRAMPTON 


PORTRAIT  AND  lUOr.RAPHICAL  RECORD 


ill  all.  At  i«HiiR>.i>.ini,  Md.,  he  rccci\ m  .1 
sahn-  cut  acniss  ihi-  finders,  an<l  at  Malvcni  Mill 
his  right  slimip  wxs  carrictl  away  by  a  fragment 
of  shell,  which  iiiflicttti  mxiii  him  a  slight  wouikI, 
ami  at  the  same  time  his  lu>rse  was  seriously  in 
jured  by  another  fragment  At  the  expiration  of 
his  tenn  of  enlistment,  he  joiiie<l  Sheri  lan's  Cav- 
alr>  Coqjs  as  citizen  clerk  in  the  c»iiniiiissar> 
department,  remaining  two  years.  He  was  then 
appointe<l  l>>  the  CommissaryGeneral  as  clerk  in 
the  onnniist«iir>-  tleiurtnieiit  of  the  Powder  River 
Indian  exi)e<iitioii.  and  s|K-iit  a  year  and  a-half  in 
that  senice.  going  to  the  Big  Horn  Mountains,  in 
Montana. 

Returning  to  I^nnliard.  he  was  suun  appointed 
by  his  father  deputy  in  the  office  of  Recorder,  and 
he  continueil  until  the  close  of  the  term,  in  1872. 
For  three  years,  he  was  Secretary  of  the  Weed 
Sewing-machine  Company  in  Chicago,  and  in 
1S76  he  was  electetl  Circuit  Clerk  and  Rec<irder 
for  DiiPage  County,  and  has  been  connectetl 
with  the  office  ever  since.  On  the  expiration  of 
his  tenn  of  four  years,  his  brother  was  elected  to 
the  office,  and  he  remaiiieil  with  him  and  all  his 
successors  as  deputy.  In  every  position  he  has 
lieeii  calleil  to  fill.  liLs  work  has  Ijeen  characterized 
by  faithfulness  and  care,  and  he  enjoys  the  con- 
fiilence  of  the  entire  public.  He  posses-ses  a 
cheerful,  obliging  disi>osition,  and  is  admirably 
adapted  for  a  public  official.  That  he  does  not 
allow  care  to  eat  away  his  life  is  evince*!  by  his 
rotund  fonu  and  jolly  face. 

Mr.  Hull  is  a  sincere  Ijtliever  in  the  principles 
of  public  jxjlicy  promulgate<l  by  the  Re]>ublican 
party,  and  gives  it  his  hearty  allegianit.-  now,  as 
he  did  when  it  was  reiKrlling  the  attacks  of  the 
cr)uiitr>''s  enemies  at  home  and  in  the  field  of  kit 
tie.  He  sustains  the  religious  ser\ices  of  the 
Congregational  .'liurch.  and  is  a  member  of  E.  S. 
Kellc>   Post.  G.  A.  R.,of  Wheaton 

In  1H69,  at  Ixmiltard,  Mr.  Hull  was  married 
to  Mivs  Mary  A  Harris,  a  natixe  of  Truxt«»n. 
N.  v..  and  a  daughter  of  Samuel  Harris  and 
Mary  Perry,  his  second  wife.  Mr.  Harris  was  a 
native  of  Connecticut,  of  Welsh  descent,  anil  an 
early  resident  of  I^'inbard.  now  decease<l.  Mr 
Hull  and  wife  are  the  parents  c>f  four  daughters. 


it  .t\  1 11 1    .11 


.M.ittic  Harris,   the  eUU-i    ■ 
Iwrd.      Frankie  is  a  stenographer  in  the  office  of 
the  l'"reiglit  A uditiir  of  the  Chicago  &  Northwest 
em  Railway  at  Chicago.     Clara  I.,  and  N'irginia 
A.  are  students  of  the  Wheaton  schix>l. 


— #^-K 


1=3" 


U^ATIlAMia,  CRAMPTON,  a  retired  fanner 
yl  and  early  settler  of  DuPage  County,  who 
\l^  now  makes  his  home  in  Na(x-rville.  was 
lM)ni  in  Madison,  New  Haven  County,  Conn., 
just  across  the  Sound  from  Long  Island,  on  the 
4th  of  March,  1S15.  His  parents,  Ikivid  and 
Julia  (Davis)  Cranii)ton,  were  born,  reare<l  and 
married  in  the  Nutmeg  Slate,  and  at  length  c-ame 

j  westward  to  Illinois.  s|>eiidiiig  their  last  days  in 
DuPage  County.  Here  the  father  pas.se<i  away, 
at  the  home  of  our  subject,  at  the  advanced  age 
of  eighty-four  years,  and  his  wife  was  called  to 
her  final  re.st  at  the  age  of  seventy -seven.  They 
ha«l  a  family  of  nine  children,  five  s«.ms  and  four 
daughters,  all  of  whom  reachetl  mature  years, 
although  only  three  are  now  living. 

Our  subject  w.is  the  fourth  in  order  of  birth. 

I  The  first  twelve  years  of  his  life  were  sj)eiit  in  the 
State  of  his  nativity,  and  he  then  accompanied 
his  i)areiits  on  their  removal  to  HensLHi,  \'t., 
where  he  made  his  home  until  June  10,  1836, 
when  he  came  to  DuPage  County.  The  first 
work  he  did  here  was  It)  prepare  timlxrr  for  a 
Iwni.  which  now  stands  on  the  farm  of  Robert 
.Strong.  For  some  time  he  worked  by  the  day. 
He  was  offered  $y»J  for  a  year's  service,  but  he 
would  iu»t  hire  at  any  price,  as  he  had  onne  West 
in  order  to  get  a  home  for  himself,  and  not  to 
iK-nefit  others  b\  his  laUir.  At  length  he  Uiught 
the  claim  which  he  transformed  into  his  present 
farm,  the  purchase  price  l)eing  $300.  There  were 
no  improvements  uixm  it.  and  the  land  was  still 
in  its  primitive  condition,  but  with  characteri.stic 
energy  he  l>egan  its  devcloi>iiient,  continuing  hit 
work  until  acre  after  acre  was  place<l  under  the 
plow  and  made  to  yiehl  him  a  good  return  for  hi.^ 
LilKir.  He  built  fences  of  rails  w-hich  he  made 
himself,  thus  dividing  the  farm  into  fields  of  con- 


II 


226 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


^•enient   size,    and    he   erected  all  the  necessary   I 
buildings  which  are  found  upon   a  model   farm. 
His  first  home  was  a  log  cabin  16x20  feet. 

As  a  companion  and  helpmate  on  life's  journey, 
Mr.   Crampton   chose    Miss    Lucy    Dudley,  who 
was  born  September  3,  1820,  in  Saybrook,  Mid- 
dlesex County,  Conn.,  their  marriage  being  cele- 
brated January  10,  1839,  by  Rev.  Jeremiah   Por- 
ter.     He  took  his  bride  to  his  log  cabin,  which 
had  neither  door  nor  window,  but  her  womanly 
ways  soon  made  it  a  comfortable  and  homelike 
place,  and   many  happy  days  were  there  spent. 
Five  children  came  to  brighten  the  home  by  their 
presence,  but  Julia,  the  eldest,   and   Minnie,  the 
fourth  child,   are  now  deceased.     Rosetta  H.  is 
the    wife   of  Gardner    Roberts,    of  Aurora,    111. 
William    Milton    resides   on    the  old  homestead; 
and  May  is  the  wife  of  C.  H.  Andrus,  who  re- 
.sides  with  our  subject.     The  mother  of  this  fam- 
ily  was   educated    in  Ohio,  and  there  made  her 
home  until  the  spring  of  1835,  when  .she  came  to 
DuPage  County  with   an  uncle  and  aunt.     She 
taught  school  here  on  the  east  branch  of  the  Du- 
Page River  for  several  years.     She  died  February 
18,  1891,  and  her  loss  was  deeply  mourned.     She 
was  a  woman  of  sterling  character,  and  a  member 
of  the    Congregational    Church,  which   she   had 
joined  when  a  young  girl.     During  the  years  of 
her    active   life   she  was  a   great  worker  in   the 
church  and  Sunday-school,  and  many  a  time  did 
she  and  her  family   drive  four  miles  in  rain  and 
storm  to  attend  religious  service.     She  taught  in 
the   Sunday-school    as   long   as   her  health  per- 
mitted, and  in  early  life  had  been  a  member  of 
the  choir,  her  sweet  voice  being  heard  in  every 
part   of    the    church.     While    a    Sunday-school 
teacher  she  was  stricken  with  paralysis,  and  for 
nearly  ten  years  was  an  invalid,  confined  to  the 
house  and  bed;  but  she  was  a  patient  sufferer, 
and   her  Christian   character  and  example  have 
strengthened   main-   a   one  who  came  in  contact 
with  her. 

Mr.  Crampton  remained  on  the  old  homestead 
until  1878,  and  carried  on  general  farming  and 
stock-raising.  Upon  the  old  place  are  many  of 
the  rails  which  he  himself  split  in  1839.  To  his 
farm  he  haulea  sixty  cords  of  building-stone  from 


Naperville,  and  the  trees  upon  the  place  are  liv- 
ing monuments  in  green  to  his  patient  labor 
and  enterprise.  He  at  one  time  owned  four  hun- 
dred acres  of  land,  and  now  has  three  hundred  and 
thirty  acres.  Of  this  two  hundred  acres  are  op- 
erated by  his  son  Milton.  On  coming  to  Naper- 
ville, in  1878,  Mr.  Crampton  laid  aside  business 
cares,  and  has  since  lived  retired,  enjoying  a  well- 
earned  rest. 

In  politics,  our  subject  was  first  a  Whig, 
but  since  the  organization  of  the  Republican 
party  has  been  one  of  its  stanch  supporters. 
With  .some  local  offices  he  has  been  honored,  hav- 
ing ser\-ed  as  Supervisor,  School  Director,  etc. 
He  holds  membership  with  the  Congregational 
Church,  in  which  he  fills  the  office  of  Trustee. 
He  is  one  of  DuPage  County's  pioneers,  and  a 
worthy  citizen,  who  has  won  the  warm  regard  of 
all  with  whom  business  or  .social  relations  have 
brought  him  in  contact. 


^^-h^ 


[^ 


"SI 


HEMAN  MORSE  FOX,  the  senior  member 
of  the  well-known  firm  of  Fox  &  Davis, 
general  merchants  of  Hinsdale,  has  been 
connected  with  the  business  interests  of  this  place 
since  1877.  He  was  born  in  East  Dorset,  Vt., 
October  28,  1843,  and  comes  from  an  old  New 
England  family.  His  paternal  grandfather  was  a 
native  of  Connecticut,  and  was  a  farmer  by  occu- 
pation. During  the  Revolutionary  War,  he  aided 
the  Colonies  in  their  struggle  for  independence  for 
four  years  and  four  months.  His  family  luim- 
bered  five  sons  and  five  daughters. 

One  of  the  number,  Marvin  Fox,  became  the 
father  of  our  subject.  He  was  born  in  the  Green 
Mountain  State,  and  was  also  an  agriculturist. 
The  year  1850  witnessed  his  emigration  westward, 
and  he  located  in  DuPage  County,  on  the  present 
site  of  Hinsdale,  where  he  purcha.sed  one  hundred 
and  sixty  acres  of  land.  The  following  year  he 
bought  an  additional  quarter-section,  but  he  af- 
terward disposed  of  a  part  of  his  property,  and  at 
his  death  his  farm  comprised  seventy-five  acres. 
He  married  Amy  Andrus,  who  was  also  born  in 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL    RIXORD. 


\'enn«)Ht.  Her  lallicr  was  a  Wrmoiit  fanner,  and 
reachtr<l  the  atlvanccil  age  of  i-ij;lity  years.  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Fox  became  the  parents  of  five  sons  and 
five  daughters,  and  the  following  are  still  living: 
George  M.,  Jarvis  M.,  Charlo.  Heniaii  M.,  and 
Ellen  Iv,  widow  of  John  \'.  Hanihle.  The  father 
of  this  family  die<l  in  1SS9.  at  the  age  of  ninety- 
four,  and  his  wife  ix»s.se«l  .iwav  in  1.SS4.  in  the 
eightieth  year  of  her  ag< 

Heman  M.  I'ox  was  a  lad  ol  seven  summers 
when,  with  hi>  parents,  he  came  to  Illinois.  He 
was  reared  upon  his  father's  farm,  remaining  at 
home  until  he  had  attaine<l  his  m.ijority.  His 
early  education,  acquired  in  the  district  scluwls  of 
UuPage  County,  was  supplemented  by  .study  in 
the  seminary  of  Manchester.  \'t.  On  the  14th  of 
SeptenilK-r.  KS70.  he  was  joinetl  in  we<llock  with 
Miss  IMicebe  A.,  daughter  of  George  and  Pha-be 
Ann  t  Witter'  BalxMck.  Three  chiUlren  were 
boni  to  them,  namely:  Kstelle  H..  Marvin  and 
Bessie  V.  The  mother  die<l  April  19,  1 891,  and 
on  the  7th  of  Septeml>er.  1S9,;,  Mr.  Fux  wasagain 
marrictl.  his  second  union  l>eing  with  Miss  Nellie 
M.  Boyd,  daughter  of  Martin  M.  and  Sarah  E. 
(  Parker  I  Boyd. 

During  the  late  war,  Mr.  Fox  entered  the ser\- 
ice,  on  the  8th  of  October.  1864,  joining  the  boys 
in  blue  of  Company  L,  Second  Regiment  Illinois 
Light  Artillery,  in  which  he  served  until  August 
9.  1865.  when,  the  war  haxnng  closed,  he  was  mus- 
tered out.  He  now  holds  mcmbershiji  with  Xaper 
Post  Xo.  468.  G.  A.  R.,  and  in  ix)litics  he  is 
a  stanch  supporter  of  Republican  principles.  He 
has  never  lieen  an  ofrux--M.-eker.  but  is  now  serving 
as  a  member  of  the  \'illage  Board  of  Tnistev>. 
He  belongs  to  the  I'niiy  Church. 

Mr.  Fox  cominenttil  merchandising'  in  is(>6  at 
Fullersburg.  in  company  with  his  brother  Charles, 
and  they  continued  together  in  business  for  the 
liT  s  one  years.      In  1H77,   they 

rei  t-ss  to   Hinstlale.  where  they 

continued  operatioas  until  the  spring  of  1889.  when 
they  s- lid  1^  k,  but  they  still  have 

some  busiii'  iinnon.      IniK9i.our 

subject  formed  a  partnership  with  E.  F.  Davis, 
under  the  finn  name  of  Fox  &  Davis,  and  they 
are  now  successfulh  <.ii;jaL;e>i  in  j.'eueral  merchan- 


dising, having  one  of  the  kailiii^;  sloris  m  Unia 
dale.  Mr.  Fox  also  has  a  gixMl  home  and  other 
village  property.  He  is  a  man  of  excellent  busi 
ness  ability,  and  his  well  directetl  efforts  have 
brought  him  a  handsome  comi)etence.  Public- 
spiritc<l  and  pn>gres.sive.  he  takes  an  active  inter- 
est in  everything  fiertaining  tf>  the  welfare  of  the 
ct)mmunit>  ,  ami  it  is  with  pleasure  that  we  pre- 
sent to  our  readers  this  record  of  his  life. 


]^-*-^-p* 


(lOHN  FRAZIKR  SNYDER,  City  Attorney 
I  of  Wheaton,  and  an  able  and  successful  mem- 
C2/  '<■'■  of  the  Chicago  Bar,  has  l)een  a  resident 
of  this  city  since  1871.  He  is  a  grandson  of 
Thomas  Snyder,  who  was  boni  in  the  Mononga- 
hela  \'alley.  in  \'irginia.  and  settletl  on  a  farm 
near  Hubbard,  Tnimbull  County,  Ohio,  about 
1830.  Thomas  Snyder's  father,  of  German  de- 
scent,was  stolen  from  X'irginia  by  the  Indians 
when  nine  years  old  and  taken  west  of  the  Ohio 
River,  where  he  was  held  in  captivity  until  he 
grew  to  manhood.  One  day  he  was  sent  by  his 
captors  across  the  Ohio  River  with  a  pony,  to 
gather  up  arrows  which  they  had  lieen  shooting. 
He  seized  this  opiK)rtnnity  to  make  his  escape, 
riding  the  p(jiiy  as  long  as  it  could  hold  out  to 
run,  and  then  ctmtinuing  his  way  on  fool  till  he 
reached  the  white  settlements.  Thomas  Sii>  der 
marriwi  Rcljecca  Titus,  also  a  native  of  \'irginia, 
of  iMiglish  lineage.  He  died  alwut  1859.  being 
in  the  iieighltorluxxl  of  seventy  years  old. 

Joshua  Snyder,  son  of  Thiimas,  and  father  of 
the  subject  of  this  notice,  was  born  in  Virginia  in 
1S25,  and  was  therefore  but  a  child  when  taken 
by  his  i>areiits  to  Ohio.  He  marrie<i  Harriet 
Frazier.  a  native  of  that  State,  and  in  1844  came 
to  Illinois,  removing  thence  to  Nebraska  in  1879. 
He  has  Ijeeii  forty -five  years  a  Weslexan  Meth- 
odist preacher,  and  has  moved  from  place  to  place 
as  selected  by  his  c<infereiK-e.  He  was  Chaplain 
of  the  Nebraska  Senate  in  the  ses.sion  of  1892-93. 
He  served  three  years  in  the  Union  army  during 
tlie  Civil  War,  as  Captain  of  Compain-  I).  Flighty- 
third    Illinois    Infaiitr\ .     L'^iiii;    out    under    Col. 


228 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


(afterward  Gen.)  Harding,  of  Monmouth,  and 
participating  in  all  the  experiences  of  that  regi- 
ment. His  wife,  Harriet,  is  a  daughter  of  John 
y.  and  Nancy  f  Veach  )  Frazier,  of  vScotch  ances- 
try. 

J.  Frazier,  eldest  of  the  four  children  of  Joshua 
and  Harriet  Snyder,  was  born  at  Kishwaukee, 
Winnebago  County,  111.,  January  i6,  1849.  Up 
to  twelve  years  of  age  he  passed  most  of  his  life 
at  Viola,  Mercer  County,  111.,  and  the  family  was 
located  at  Bloomington  when  the  father  entered 
the  army.  He  attended  the  Normal  School  at 
Normal,  near  Bloomington,  and  Monmouth  Col- 
lege, and  graduated  in  the  classical  course  at 
Wheaton  College  in  1876.  He  began  the  studj- 
of  law  under  the  preceptorship  of  Col.  H.  F. 
Vallette,  of  Chicago,  was  later  with  D.  C.  &  C. 
W.  Nochols,  of  the  same  city,  and  was  admitted 
to  practice  in  October,  1880.  His  progress  at  the 
Bar  has  been  steady,  and  he  now  enjoys  the 
emoluments  of  a  large  general  practice,  including 
law  and  chancery  cases,  and  has  al.so  successfully 
conducted  the  defen.se  in  important  criminal  trials. 
He  occupies  offices  in  the  vSchloesser  Block  in 
Chicago,  111.  He  .served  as  Police  Magistrate  of 
Wheaton  for  eight  years,  and  was  elected  City 
Attorney  in  April,  1893.  His  ca.ses  are  prepared 
with  care,  and  their  trial  is  marked  by  legal 
acumen  and  alertness,  and  a  reserve  of  force  which 
conspires  to  overcome  any  sudden  okstacles,  as 
well  as  to  exhaust  the  resources  of  his  adversaries. 
Per.sonally,  Mr.  Snyder  is  a  man  of  large  frame 
and  fine  physique,  and  his  presence  is  calculated  to 
attract  attention  anywhere,  and  especialh-  to  im- 
press a  jury,  when  reinforced  by  his  keen  mental- 
ity and  able  pleadings. 

In  political  associations,  he  is  an  ardent  Repub- 
lican, and  is  not  at  a  loss  to  account  for  the  faith 
that  actuates  him  in  sustaining  this  exponent  of 
his  ideal  in  the  progress  of  good  government. 
He  attends  the  Methodist  Church,  of  which  his 
wife  is  a  communicant. 

Mr.  Snyder  became  the  husband  of  Miss  Frankie 
Ellen  Wheaton  on  the  14th  of  August,  1878,  and 
is  the  possessor  and  occupant  of  a  happy  home  on 
Seminary  Street,  in  the  city  named  for  Mrs.  Sny- 
der's father,  Jesse  C.  Wheaton,  Sr.      (See  biog- 


raphj-  elsewhere) .  Two  bright  children  com- 
plete this  familj-  circle,  namely:  Juanita  Clemm 
and  John  Frazier,  Jr.  Mrs.  Snyder  graduated  in 
the  classical  course  of  Wheaton  College  in  June, 
1875,  and  taught  six  years  in  the  Wheaton  High 
School,  being  principal  the  last  three  years. 


-=5. 


-SJ 


^^r^ 


[^ 


(TOHN  H.  PAPENHAUSEN,  one  oftheself- 
l  made  men  of  DuPage  County,  who  is  now 
G?  extensively  engaged  in  the  merchant-tailor- 
ing business  in  Hin.sdale,  was  born  in  the  city  of 
Nienborg,  Hanover,  Germany,  on  the  28th  of 
September,  1837.  He  is  now  the  only  survivor 
in  a  family  of  three  .sons  and  a  daughter,  who 
were  born  to  Deitrich  and  Margaret  (Stumpen- 
hansen)  Papenhau.sen,  natives  of  Germany.  The 
father  died  in  his  native  land  in  1871,  at  the  age 
of  fifty-eight  years,  and  his  wife  passed  away 
about  six  years  previous.  He  was  a  tailor  by 
trade,  and  served  as  a  soldier  in  the  regular 
army.  Both  were  members  of  the  Evangelical 
Church,  and  were  highly  respected  citizens  ofthe 
community  in  which  they  made  their  home. 
The  paternal  grandfather,  Henry  Papenhausen, 
reached  the  ripe  old  age  of  seventy -seven  years. 
His  family  inimbered  four  sons.  The  maternal 
grandfather.  Christian  Stumpenhausen,  became 
an  extensive  farmer,  and  reached  the  age  of  sixt}- 
years. 

In  the  land  of  his  nativity  John  H.  spent  his 
boyhood  and  youth,  and  when  only  thirteen  years 
of  age  began  learning  the  tailor's  trade,  which  he 
has  since  followed.  In  accordance  with  the  laws 
of  Germany,  he  entered  the  army  and  was  a  sol- 
dier in  the  war  between  that  country  and  Den- 
mark. He  ser\'ed  for  thirty-nine  weeks  in  Hol- 
.stein,  and  was  in  the  regular  army  for  seven  years. 
With  the  view  of  trying  his  fortune  in  the  New 
World,  he  bade  good-bye  to  home  and  friends  in 
187  I,  and  sailed  for  America.  Locating  in  Down- 
er's Grove,  he  there  followed  the  tailor's  trade 
for  a  time,  and  afterwards  spent  three  years  in 
the  same  line  of  business  in  Brush  Hill.  It  was 
in  1875  that  he  came  to  Hinsdale  and  opened  the 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGR-\PHICAL  RECORD. 


store  wliich  he  lias  siiKfcarrioi  on  He  now  has  a 
fine  stock  of  gooils.  employs  a  miiulier  ol  hands. 
and  is  doing  a  large  business,  which  has  con- 
stantly increase*!  from  the  be^;iniiinn,  and  which 
is  well  meriteil  l>y  his  earnest  efforts  to  pleasi-  his 
customers,  and  his  straightforward  and  upright 
methcKls  in  all  his  business  dealings. 

In  i86j,  Mr.  I'ajHrnhausen  wedded  Miss  Mar\ 
Bems,  daughter  of  Dietrich  and  Mary  i  Meinken ) 
Benis.  Seven  children  were  born  of  their  union, 
as  follows;  Man. .  now  the  wife  of  Nonnan  Jef- 
fers.  by  whom  she  has  one  son,  Robert:  Sophia: 
Annie,  wife  of  Frank  Whimey.  by  whom  she  has 
one  child.  Lawrence:  Lena:  William,  who  died 
in  infancy:  Charlie  and  Willie. 

Mr.  Papenhausen  now  has  a  good  home  and 
business  projHrrty  in  Hinsdale.  He  deserves  great 
credit  for  his  success  in  life,  which  has  been  gained 
through  industry,  perseverance  and  determina- 
tion. He  has  made  the  most  of  his  opportunities. 
and  his  labors  have  placed  him  among  the  sub- 
stantial citizens  of  his  adopted  county.  Socially, 
he  is  a  member  of  the  Masonic  lodge  of  Hinsdale 
and  the  Ancient  Order  of  United  Workmen, 
while  his  wife  is  a  memlxrr  of  the  Degree  of  Honor 
of  the  latter  fraternity.  In  politics,  he  is  a  sup- 
porter of  the  Republican  jwrty. 


3^?"$ii 


was   bom   in 
Vt.,  on   the 
1 799,  and  died  at  Whea- 
Afler   practicing    medi- 


0K  ORLANDO  WAKELEE 
^.mdgate,  Windham  County 
J  7th  of  Novemljer 
ton.  111..  May  7,  1881. 
cine  succes-sfully  for  thirty  years  at  Clarence.  Erie 
County.  N.  Y..  he  came  to  Illinois,  in  1852,  to 
retire  from  practice  and  settle  his  children  in  the 
midst  <if  the  advantages  afforded  by  a  new  coun- 
try. His  earliest  ancestor  now  known  was  his 
grandfather.  Abner  Wakelee,  who  died  on  the 
22d  of  July,  1769.  HLs  birthplace  and  age  can- 
not now  lie  detemiinwl.  His  wife.  Sarah,  died 
Septemljer  |H.  i.sri.  and  must  have  l)eeti  many 
years  his  junior. 

Their  s<->n.  Piatt   Wakelee.  Uirn    February    17, 
1766.  married    Mary     Minor   January    17,    1789. 


Judge'  Henry  Booth,  wli"  1. '111111111  iii<  ;>.iiiii 
western  I^w  School  at  Chicaj^o.  was  related  to 
her  thniugh  the  .Minor  blood.  Piatt  Wakelee 
was  a  shoeniaker  by  oixnn>ation.  and  engage*!  in 
fanning  al.st).  In  18<>8  he  removi-«l  to  Clinton. 
Oneida  County,  N.  Y.,  and  in  1820  to  I^ancaster, 
Erie  County,  same  State.  Here  he  died  in  March, 
1854.  His  wife.  Mary,  die*!  Scptemlxrr  6.  1838, 
and  he  was  marri«l  on  the  17th  of  July,  1840.  to 
Mrs.  Susan  Day.  He  was  the  father  *»f  eight 
children,  namely :  Elihu,  Laura,  Clenjent,  .\nna, 
Sophronia,  Orlando.  Olive  and  Polly  Maria. 
When  alxiut  eighty  years  old  Piatt  Wakelee  aban 
doned  the  use  of  tolxicco.  at  the  s,iine  tin>e  with 
his  son  Orlando. 

Orlando  Wakelee  attendet!  the  n  hiiiiumi  schtx)ls. 
and  alx>ut  the  tin»e  lie  l)ecanie  u{  age  he  entered 
the  Buffalo  Medical  College,  and  graduated  De- 
ceni!>er  3,  1822.  He  immetiiately  Ix-gan  the  prac- 
tice of  his  profession  at  Clarence,  in  which  he 
was  very  successful.  On  his  removal  to  Illinois, 
he  bought  a  farm  in  Milton  T*>wnship,  DuPage 
County,  a  part  of  which  is  in  the  limits  of  the 
present  city  of  Wheaton.  This  he  tilled  for  three 
years,  and  then  sold  out  and  retire*!  from  active 
labor.  He  built  the  house  now  occupied  by  his 
son,  William  H.  Wakelee.  on  West  Street,  and 
continued  to  reside  there  during  the  balance  of 
his  life.  He  took  an  active  interest  in  all  ques- 
tions of  public  concern,  and  was  an  indefatigable 
enemv  of  intemperance  and  human  slavery.  He 
was  a  useful  memlxrr  <jf  the  Methtnlist  Mpiscopal 
Church,  and  the  Sons  of  Temperance.  In  early 
life  he  attached  himself  to  the  Whig  party,  and 
naturally  liecame  a  Repulilican  on  the  organiza- 
tion of  the  party  bearing  that  name.  During  his 
residence  in  Clarence,  he  servetl  as  T«>wn  Super- 
inteiide:it  of  Sc1i»xj1s  for  many  years,  and  was 
Trustee  of  the  town  of  Wheaton.  the  city  of  that 
name  having  been  incoqx)rate«!  afler  his  lime. 
He  was  a  man  <»f  high  character  and  ver\  gentle 
manly  dep»jrtment. 

Dr.  Wakclets  first  wife  was  Lydia  Slosson. 
who  died  of  c*>iLsunipti<>n  Sepleml>er  30,  1837. 
Her  six  children  are  all  dccea.sc*l,  without  issue, 
except  the  second.  Ezra  ().,  who  left  a  son  named 
Freilerick.     The  latter  is  now  a  resident  of  Ar- 


230 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


kansas.  On  the  nth  of  June,  1838,  Dr.  Wakelee 
married  Miss  Thankful  Strong,  who  was  born  in. 
CHnton,  N.  Y.,  November  23,  1807.  She  died 
March  23,  1865.  Of  her  four  children,  two  are 
living,  the  first  and  last  dying  unmarried.  A 
sketch  of  the  eldest  follows.  The  other,  Lucy  E. , 
is  engaged  in  dressmaking  in  Chicago.  Eveline 
Maria  and  Edward  A.  are  the  names  of  those  de- 
ceased. Dr.  Wakelee  married  for  his  third  wife 
Miss  Mar>-  Ann  Childs,  a  native  of  Wilmington, 
Vt.,  who  .sun-ives  him,  and  resides  in  Wheaton. 
William  Henn,-  Wakelee,  only  living  son  of 
Dr.  Orlando  Wakelee,  was  born  in  Clarence,  N. 
Y.,  February  3,  1841.  Most  of  his  education 
was  received  in  the  common  schools  of  Wheaton. 
On  attaining  his  majority,  he  went  to  Battle 
Creek,  Mich.,  where  he  was  employed  for  three 
years  in  a  store.  In  the  mean  time  he  served  four 
months  in  the  Union  Anny  as  a  member  of  Com- 
pany F,  One  Hundred  and  Fifth  Illinois  Infantry, 
being  discharged  for  disability.  He  has  been 
employed  mo.st  of  his  life  in  clerical  labor,  chiefly 
in  connection  with  the  courts  of  Chicago,  and  in 
an  abstract  office  of  that  city.  He  follows  the 
precepts  of  his  father  in  religious  and  political 
matters.  On  the  2d  of  August,  1865,  he  married 
Miss  Electa  Wibirt,  a  native  of  Ledyard,  Cayuga 
County,  N.  Y.  Her  parents,  John  and  Submit 
(Taylor)  Wibirt,  were  born  at  Saratoga,  N.  Y., 
and  were  Quakers,  like  her  grandparents.  John 
and  Elizabeth  Wibirt.  They  were  of  English 
extraction.  Mr.  Wakelee  and  wife  are  blessed 
with  three  children,  namely:  Harry  Wibirt,  A.sa 
Wibirt  and  Anna  Booth. 

to  '•"^-CT'^-ba    '  a 

EHARLES  PFEIFER,  who  is  engaged  in  the 
undertaking  business  in  Hinsdale,  claims 
Illinois  as  the  State  of  his  nativity.  He 
was  born  in  Cook  County,  September  30,  1850, 
and  is  of  German  descent.  The  paternal  grand- 
father spent  his  entire  life  in  Germany.  The 
maternal  grandfather,  Philip  Bohlander,  came  to 
America  about  1S40,  and  located  near  Elmhurst, 
where  he  engaged  in  farming  for  a  short  time. 


He  then  rejnoved  to  Mokena,  Will  Countv.  He 
was  a  member  of  the  Lutheran  Church,  and  died 
in  that  faith  in  1879,  at  the  age  of  eighty  years. 
The  death  of  his  wife  occurred  in  1857. 

The  parents  of  our  subject,  Peter  and  Philipine 
(Bohlander)  Pfeifer,  were  both  natives  of  Ger- 
man\-.  The  former  was  a  farmer,  and  crossed  the 
briny  deep  to  this  country  in  1842.  He  took  up 
his  residence  upon  a  farm,  which  he  purchased, 
east  of  the  present  site  of  Elmhurst,  but  this  he 
afterwards  sold,  removing  to  Cook  County.  He 
purchased  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  thirty 
miles  south  of  Chicago,  and  to  its  improvement 
devoted  his  energies  until  1876,  when  he  removed 
to  Richton,  where  he  spent  his  remaining  days. 
He  died  at  the  age  of  seventy-six,  and  his  wife 
passed  away  several  years  previous.  With  the 
Catholic  Church  he  held  membership,  while  his 
wife  belonged  to  the  Lutheran  Church.  Of  their 
familj'  of  four  sons  and  four  daughters,  six  are 
still  living  :  Elizabeth,  wife  of  Michael  Eimhorn, 
of  Madison,  111.:  Peter,  of  Frankfort,  111.;  Charles, 
of  Hinsdale;  Catherine,  wife  of  Daniel  Merker,  of 
Chicago  Heights;  Eva,  wife  of  Charles  Scheit,  of 
Cook  County:  and  John,  of  Harvey,  111. 

Mr.  Pfeifer  whose  name  heads  this  record 
grew  to  manhood  upon  his  father's  farm  in  Cook 
County,  and  in  the  common  schools  acquired  a 
good  English  education.  To  his  father  he  gave 
the  benefit  of  his  ser\nces  until  nineteen  years  of 
age,  when  he  began  learning  the  tinner's  trade  at 
Fullersburg.  Subsequently,  he  went  to  Lyons, 
and  completed  his  apprenticeship,  after  which  he 
worked  in  Chicago,  and  later  in  Denver,  Colo.  In 
1873  he  returned  to  Illinois,  and  took  up  his  resi- 
dence in  Hinsdale,  where  he  worked  in  the  em- 
plo\'  of  others  for  two  years.  He  then  opened  a 
tin-shop  of  his  own,  which  he  conducted  for  about 
two  }-ears,  when  he  became  associated  with  John 
Bohlander  in  the  hardware,  farm  machinery,  and 
undertaking  business.  The>-  successfully  carried 
on  operations  under  the  finn  name  of  Bohlander 
&  Co.  until  1890,  when  Mr.  Pfeifer  sold  his  in- 
terest to  his  partner,  and  has  since  been  alone  in 
the  undertaking  business. 

On  October  30,  1878,  our  subject  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Miss  Sarah   Wolf  a  daughter  of 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAI.  RJiCORI> 


J3« 


Frvtlcruk  aiul  M  nii    \\\.lf,  who 

were   natives  ui    ■  ihiKlnii  have 

been  born  to  thciu.  a  mjh  ami  four  tlaughtcrs. 
r.cor>;«.-.  Hllcii,  l.ulu,  Mattic  ami  l^rai-r.  ami  the 
family  circle  yet  rcinaiiLs  uiihrokcii. 

Mr.  Pfeifer  Ukes  considerable  interest  in  civic 
s<XMeties,  and  holds  njeniljershij)  with  Hiiisilale 
Uxlge  Xo.  546.  A.  F.  &  A.  M.;  ami  als..  with 
Juniata  I^idge  Xo.  .^74.  K  1'.  In  iwlilics.  he  is 
a  supi>i>rtfr  of  the  IVinocracy  .  Me  owns  a  farm 
of  thirty  acres  two  and  a  half  miles  from  Hins- 
dale, also  his  home  and  business  property  in  this 
place.  He  is  a  man  of  diligence  and  enterprise, 
and  by  his  gi>oil  management  and  business  ability 
he  has  worked  his  way  up  from  a  humble  posi- 
tion, until  he  is  now  numl>ere<l  among  the  well-  1 
to-do  citizens  of  the  community.  1 


=1^-^^ 


N\V    \  ANDERHOOF.   M    D  .  though  yet  a 
...ung    man,    is   the    leading     physician    of 
Wheaton.     It  is  now  only  two  years  thai  he 
haslx-r  1  in  practice  in  this  place,  but  he 

is  so  th  .■   jMjstcd  in  meilicine,  and  his  abil- 

ity is  so  readily  recognized,  that  he  has  already 
obtaine<l  a  large  and  remunerative  practice.  From 
i.sjfj  to  Xovcii.ljer.  iSyi.  he  was  engagetl  in  his 
professional  duties  in  Bloomingdale,  DuPage 
County.  The  Doctor  was  boni  in  Coldwater, 
Mich.,  in  August.  1X50.  He  is  a  sun  of  Richard 
and  Eliza  ( Strong )  \'anderhoof.  The  father  was 
formerly  engaged  in  farming  in  Branch  County. 
Mich.,  near  Coldwater.  Though  eighty-eight 
years  of  age.  he  is  still  hale  and  hearty  and  is  now- 
making  his  home  with  our  subject.  The  mother 
was  l>om  in  Connecticut, of  Scotch- Irish  ancestry. 
and  died  when  the  Doctor  was  only  five  years  old. 
He  is  next  to  the  youngest  of  seven  children. 
Margaret  is  the  wife  of  L,.  D.  Dellman,  a  Inndier 
man  and  manufacturer  at  Paragould.  Ark.  Mar- 
tin was  in  the  army,  and  wxs  an  engineer  by  oc- 
cupation, being  in  the  employ  of  the  Western  In- 
diana Railroad  He  died  at  his  home  in  South 
Chicago  in  ist^i.  at  the  age  of  fifty  seven.  John 
W.  was  the   Fina  Lieutenant  of  Company  G,  of 


the  Twenty  ninth  Inm m.i  iM^jinniu.  during  the 
late    Civil    War,  and    i-<   now    a    resident    <>f   Si<l 
ney.    Neb.     Cordelia.    Mrs.    .McGoggy,    lives  ni 
Iowa.     Edward  was  in    the  I^iomis  First  Michi 
gan  Light  Artillery,  lielonging  to  Battery  A,    and 
is   now    a    Louisiana   planter.      I^muel    D.,  the 
youngest  of  the  familx  ,  resides  in  Holdrege,  Xeb. 
The  father  of  these  children   niarrie<l   for  his  sec 
o.id  wife  Miss  Harriett  Stoddard,   who  is  also  liv- 
ing   with    the    Doctor,  and   is  now  seventy-seven 
years  ot  age. 

The  boyhootl  and  youth  of  our  subject  were 
paivsed  near  his  birthplace  in  Michigan  He  at- 
teiideti  and  gradualetl  from  the  High  School 
in  Coldw-ater,  and  was  always  an  apt  student. 
From  the  time  he  was  a  bo>  'he  had  a  strong  de- 
sire to  become  a  physician,  and  at  the  earliest  op- 
portunity commenced  the  study  of  me<licine.  His 
firyt  preceptor  was  Dr.  L  R.  Daniels,  who  had 
formerly  been  one  of  his  teachers  in  the  Grammar 
Schools,  and  who  now  gave  him  a  good  ground- 
ing in  the  fundamental  principles  of  surgery  and 
medicine.  After  studying  with  Dr.  Daniels  for 
two  years,  he  entered  the  Bemiett  Metlical  College 
in  Chicago,  from  which  he  graduateil  in  1874. 
The  following  year  he  entcretl  the  Chicago  Med- 
ical College,  from  which  institution  he  graduated 
in  1S75. 

With  his  good  theoretical  knowledge.  Dr.  Van- 
derhoof  returned  to  Coldwater,  Mich.,  and  for 
two  years  receivevl  invaluable  practical  experience 
with  his  former  teacher  and  friend.  Dr.  Daniels. 
Thus  well  eijuipjied  for  his  future  career,  he  then 
went  to  Bloomingdale.  111.,  where  he  Ixmght  out 
the  practicx- of  DrOlstin.  He  has  l»een  remark- 
ably .succes-sful,  and  is  i>erhai>sthe  leading  jihysi- 
cianofnot  only  Wheaton,  but  Dul'age  County, 
He  is  one  who  spares  no  pains,  research  or  study 
in  order  to  l»e  thonmghly  up  with  the  times  in  all 
branches  and  things  pertaining  to  njcdidne. 

On  January  23,  1H75,  the  Doctor  married  Miss 
Eveline  Blank,  daughter  of  William  and  Eleanor 
Blank,  of  Wa>ne,  DuPage  Count\.  Their  union 
has  lieen  bles.s<.-<l  with  a  bright  little  son,  who  is 
calle«l  l>on  A.  Mrs.  N'anderhoof  is  a  faithful 
mcmljer  of  the  Baptist  Church  of  this  city 

Fraternally,  the  Doctor  belongs  to  the  Masonic 


232 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


lodge  of  Wheaton,  and  belongs  to  Bettue  Com- 
manden-  No.  36,  of  Elgin.  He  is  also  a  member 
of,  and  Examining  Physician  for,  Camp  No.  488, 
M.  W.  A.,  of  Wheaton.  In  his  social,  as  well 
as  business  and  professional  relations,  he  is  verv 
popular,  and  has  the  faculty  of  making  friends 
of  one  and  all. 


^ 


^-f^i 


r^ASCHAL  P.  MATTHEWS,  one  of  the  highly 
Ly  respected  citizens  of  Hinsdale,  who  well  de- 
[S  serves  representation  in  the  history-  of  his 
adopted  county,  is  a  native  of  the  Empire  State. 
He  was  boni  in  Herkimer  County,  August  3, 
1811,  and  is  a  son  of  Edmund  and  Lucy  (Mc- 
Clelland) Matthews,  the  former  of  French  descent, 
and  the  latter  of  Scotch  lineage.  Edmund  Matth- 
ews was  twice  married,  and  by  his  first  union 
had  a  son,  Charles.  By  the  second,  there  were 
five  children:  Henn,-;  Lucy,  deceased,  wife  of 
Reuben  Wellington;  Pa.schal  P.;  Emen,-,  and 
Lucretia,  deceased,  wife  of  Myron  Everetts.  In 
earlv  life  the  father  of  this  family  was  a  carpenter, 
and  helped  to  build  the  first  market-place  in  Bos- 
ton. Later,  however,  he  followed  agricultural 
pursuits.  He  served  during  the  War  of  1S12,  as 
Quartermaster,  and  died  on  his  farm  in  New 
York  September  2,  1848,  at  the  age  of  seventy- 
three  vears.  His  wife  sunived  him  some  time, 
and  passed  away  Februan.-  17,  1862.  They  held 
membership  with  the  Presbyterian  Church  in 
Mexico,  Oswego  County,  N.  Y. 

Mr.  Matthews  whose  name  heads  this  record 
spent  his  boyhood  and  youth  upon  his  father's 
farm,  remaining  at  home  until  he  had  reached  his 
twentieth  year,  when  he  began  to  earn  his  own 
livelihood.  Later,  he  attended  school  for  a  few 
months,  and  then  engaged  with  a  stage  company 
for  ten  years.  He  was  afterward  for  nearly  ten 
years  captain  of  a  packet-boat  on  the  Erie  Canal, 
running  between  Syracuse,  Schenectady  and  Uti- 
ca.  With  the  hope  of  bettering  his  financial  con- 
dition, he  determined  to  come  to  the  West  in 
1859,  and,  earning  out  this  resolution,  took  up 
his  residence  in   Chicago.      He  embarked  in  the 


grain  business,  and  was  connected  with  the  Board 
of  Trade  for  man}-  >ears,  continuing  operations 
along  this  hue  until  1883,  when  he  retired  from 
active  business. 

Onthe2istofMay,  1840,  Mr.  Matthews  wedded 
Miss  Louisa  \'inton,  and  they  became  the  parents 
of  one  child,  a  daughter,  Alice,  now  the  wife  of  Nel- 
son R.  Davis.  The  mother  died  in  1891.  since 
which  time  a  niece  of  Mr.  Matthews  has  been 
keeping  house  for  him. 

For  many  years  our  subject  has  been  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Odd  Fellows'  fraternity.  In  early  life 
he  exercised  his  right  of  franchise  in  support  of 
the  Whig  parts-,  but  on  its  dissolution  joined  the 
ranks  of  the  new  Republican  part\-  and  has  since 
fought  under  its  banner.  It  was  in  1889  that  he 
came  to  Hinsdale,  where  he  has  a  beautiful  home 
and  ten  acres  of  valuable  land  within  the  corpora- 
tion limits  of  the  town.  He  has  now  reached  the 
age  of  eighty -two,  but  his  years  rest  lightly  upon 
him,  and  he  is  still  strong  and  active.  His  eyes  are 
bright,  his  mind  clear  and  keen,  and  he  is  a  good 
and  rapid  penman.  While  nt)t  a  church  mem- 
ber, he  has  always  attended  religious  services  and 
contributed  liberally  to  church  and  benevolent 
work.  He  is  a  man  of  fine  physique  and  excel- 
lent carriage,  and  bids  fair  to  live  for  many  years 
to  come.  His  life  has  been  honorable  and  up- 
!  right,  and  his  many  friends  hold  him  in  high  re- 
gard. 


E HESTER  WRIGHT  PLUMMER,  a  wor- 
thy retired  farmer  of  Wheaton  and  consistent 
Christian  gentleman,  is  a  native  of  New 
York,  bom  in  Alden,  Erie  County,  on  December 
20,  1 82 1.  His  parents,  Caleb  and  Polly  Plum- 
mer.  were  of  New  Hampshire  birth.  His  mother 
came  of  an  old  and  honored  family  of  the  Granite 
State,  her  father  being  Deacon  Caleb  Webster,  of 
the  Presbyterian  Church,  who  lived  to  the  age  of 
eighty  years. 

Caleb  Plum:iier  went  from  his  native  State  to 
western  New  York  in  1818,  and  cleared  up  a  new 
farm  in  the  hea\->-  timber  of  that  region.  He  died 
in  1S40,  aged  sixty  years.     He  was  a  man  of  pro- 


PORTRAIT  AND  HUK'.RAI'HICAI,    RIXORD. 


gressivc    iilca-s,   whu  cit»l>r;ux-«i   ihi-    I'robx  Icriaii 
faith,  and  sustained  the  Whig  jxirty  in  niatttrs  of 
national  govenuncnt.      He  had    thrw   sons  and 
five  danxhters,  only  three  of  wlioni  are  now  li\ 
ing.    Chester   being   the   youngest  of  the  fannh 
Sally,  the  eldest,    married   David  Tahnage.  with 
whom  she  went  in  iS^hto  York,  Dnl'age  County, 
where  she    dieil.      Folly,  wife  of  Josi-ph    Havens. 
died    in    Newstead   Township,    adjoining  AKlen. 
N    V.    She  was  the  only  one  who   did   not  move 
West.   William  die*.!  at  Lansing.  Mich.,  and  Hen 
jamin  now  resides  at  Hinsdale,  this  county,  lieiiig 
in  his  eighty  third  year.   Nancy,  wife  of  Cyrenus 
Litchfield,  and  Maria.  Mrs.  Peter  Torode,  dii.-<i  in 
York  Township,  DuPage  County.    Philura,  Mr> 
Asa  Knapp.   is  living  at  Melrose.  Cook  Counlv . 
III.      It  will  thus  l>e  seen  that  six  were  early   res 
idents  of  Illinois 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  liveil  on  the  home 
fann  and  attendetl  the  district  schixil.  His  father 
died  when  he  was  eighteen  years  of  age,  and  the 
care  of  the  farm  and  his  mother  devolvetl  upon 
him.  After  attaining  his  majority,  he  workeil  at 
farming  aud  luniliering.  In  1S45,  he  visited  his 
relatives  in  this  county,  and  decided  to  settle  in 
the  West  as  soon  as  he  could  shajn.-  his  affairs  to 
that  end.  In  1848,  he  made  the  change  and  pir 
chase<l  a  farm  in  York  Township,  on  which  he 
liveil  thirty-five  years  and  ten  days,  and.  Ixring  an 
industrious  and  intelligent  farmer,  he  was  remark- 
ably succes.sful.  On  acx-ount  of  the  ill  health  of 
his  wife,  he  removed  to  Wheaton  in  1SS5,  and 
built  his  present  handsome  residence  on  the  mirth- 
east  comer  of  Gary  Avenue  and  Maple  Street,  in 
which  he  setUeil  the  same  year.  On  Christmas 
Day,  1885,  he  was  robbed  by  death  of  his  faithful, 
loving  and  beloved  comj)ani<>n  on  life's  journey . 
Mrs.  Plunimer  was  a  faithful  Christian,  and  affil 
iated  with  the  Wesleyan  Metlnxlist  Church, 
with  her  family  After  her  death  the  others 
joined  the  Methixlist  l%pi.scoi)al  Church  in  or- 
der to  have  a  convenient  church  home  Mrs 
Plunimer.  whove  maiden  name  was  Mary  Town- 
send.  w;ls  l»jn>  in  Concord.  Hrie  County.  N  Y., 
and  was  fifty-six  years  and  ten  months  old  when 
she  died  Her  parents,  Gill»ert  Tow  iisen<l  and 
Esther    Twilchell.    were    deM.x-ndants  of  old  New 


Mngland  lamilies.  and  were  proniment  .imi>M>;  iIk- 
early  residents  of  I%rie  Count>'.  The  wedding  of 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Plunimer  took  place  just  before  his 
remo\al  to  the  West.  Their  children  were  four 
in  munlier.  llenr>  .Millard,  the  eldest,  is  a  busi- 
ness man  of  Wheaton.  and  has  one  son.  Chester 
Henr\'.  Arthur  die<l  at  the  age  of  eleven  >ears. 
Mary  Klla  is  the  widow  of  Charles  Iv  Phillijis,  and 
resides  with  her  father,  caring  for  his  household. 
Ida  Maria  died  when  sixteen  yc-jirs  old. 

Mr.  Plunimer.  who  is  a  progressive  citizen,  was 
foniierly  a  Whig,  and  now  sustains  the  Republi- 
can ]>arly  in  tpiestions  of  national  imi>ort.  but  hxs 
never  taken  other  interest  in  jnilitio  than  tt»  per- 
form the  manifest  duty  of  ever>-  intelligent  citizen 
in  voting  in  all  imjxirtant  elex-tions.  He  has  never 
sought  an\'  official  station,  has  sustainetl  the  pro- 
hibitorj-  movement  in  his  home  city  and  elsewhere 
as  applie<l  to  s;ilo<ins,  and  is  a  useful  and  respecle<l 
memlK'r  ol  the  comnuinitv. 


}^r^[ 


MANrokl)  H1;A1)  KICHAKDSON.  propn 
r\  etor  of  the  Wlicalon  Creamerx  ,  is  a  native  of 
\~/  New  York,  born  in  lA^banon.  Madison  Coun- 
ty, that  State,  on  the  .^t>th  of  July,  1837.  His 
graiKifatlier,  John  Richardson,  was  a  farmer  at 
Hampton.  Windham  County,  Conn.,  and  was 
the  son  of  an  luiglisliman.  His  wife  was  a  Jen- 
nings, a  name  indicating  Sc«>tcli  ancestrj  .  Alden 
Richardson,  their  son,  boni  in  Hampton,  married 
a  native  of  that  town,  Sophia  Cady,  and  settle<l  in 
New  York  alH>nt  iHr,u.  He  was  a  fanner  and 
pa.sseil  his  life  in  Ix'lwnon,  after  settling  there. 
He  was  a  soldier  in  the  War  of  i.Hij,  and  a  strong 
snpiKirter  of  the  Republican  jwrtv  after  its  organ- 
ization, having  formerly  affiliatetl  with  the  Frc«- 
soilers  an<l  Whigs.  He  embraix-d  the  religious 
faith  of  the  Baptist  Church.  His  children  cui\ 
siste<l  of  three  sons,  all  now  living.  AlljertC, 
the  eldest,  resides  at  Norwich,  N.  N'.;  the  other 
two.  Samuel  H.  and  our  subject,   in  Wheaton. 

Sanford  H.  Richard.son,  thinl  son  of  Alden,  re- 
mained on  the  home  fann  until  t\\'  'it 
vearsold,  and  re*.'eive<l  a  faircoiiim«>ii  ^'  11 


234 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAIv   RECORD. 


cation.  He  continued  farming  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  his  home  until  1876,  when  he  came  to 
lUinois.  For  two  years  he  was  emploN'ed  in  the 
cheese  and  butter  factory  of  C.  W.  Gould,  at  Han- 
over, Cook  Count)-.  He  then  purchased  the 
creamery  at  Barber's  Corners,  Will  County,  which 
he  operated  nearly  five  years.  After  spending  a 
winter  at  Naperville,  and  nine  months  at  Doland, 
S.  Dak.,  he  came  to  Wheaton,  in  November, 
1883,  and  has  dwelt  here  ever  since.  He  rented 
the  creamery  at  Wheaton  for  a  few  years,  and  then 
bought  it,  and  has  continued  to  operate  it  until 
this  time.  In  summer  he  makes  ice-cream,  in 
addition  to  butter,  and  by  care  and  skill  has  se- 
cured a  good  reputation  for  his  product.  He  en- 
joys the  confidence  and  respect  of  the  communit}', 
and  is  now  serving  his  third  term  as  Alderman  of 
the  Third  Ward  of  the  city.  He  is  a  sound  Re- 
publican, and  sustains  the  orthodox  churches. 

On  the  3d  of  March,  1864,  Mr.  Richardson 
married  Miss  Oresta  J.  Tuttle,  who  was  born  in 
Smyrna,  Chenango  County,  N.  Y.,  and  is  a 
daughter  of  Stephen  and  Eliza  (Ferris)  Tuttle, 
the  latter  a  native  of  New  York.  Stephen  Tuttle, 
like  his  parents,  Enos  and  Susannah  ( Alcott )  Tut- 
tle, was  born  in  Connecticut,  and  their  ancestors 
were  Engli.sh.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Richardson  are  the 
parents  of  but  one  child,  Florence  E.,  now  the 
wife  of  Herbert  D.  Remington,  proprietor  of  a 
creamery  at  Ruthven,  Iowa. 

HIRAM  SMITH,  one  of  the  earliest  residents 
of  Wheaton,  was  born  in  Brownsville,  Jef- 
ferson County,  N.  Y.,  March  17,  1821. 
His  grandfather,  William  Smith,  was  a  Eieutenant 
in  the  Revolutionary  army,  and  was  buried  near 
his  home  in  Hancock,  Berkshire  Coiuitj',  Mass. 
John,  the  youngest  of  the  six  sons  of  Lieut. 
William  Smith,  married  Sarah  Eldridge,  who  was, 
like  himself,  a  native  of  Hancock.  Rebecca  El- 
dridge, nee  Corp,  the  mother  of  the  last-named, 
reached  the  age  of  one  hundred  years.  About 
1820,  John  Smith  settled  in  Brownsville,  N.  Y., 
where  he   engaged  in  farming  for  twenty-eight 


years.  In  1848,  he  moved  to  Wisconsin  to  be  near 
his  children,  and  retired  from  active  life.  He  lived 
for  a  time  at  Spring  Prairie  and  East  Troy,  Wis., 
and  at  Wheaton,  and  died  at  Pine  Island,  Minn.,  in 
187 1,  aged  seventy-six  years.  His  children  num- 
bered eight,  of  whom  four  are  now  living.  Temp- 
lin  G.,  the  elde.st,  died  at  Spring  Prairie,  Wis. 
Hiram  is  the  .second.  Eliza,  widow  of  H.  M.  Cur- 
tis, resides  at  Logan,  Iowa.  Ellis  died  in  Gentry 
County,  Mo.,  while  a  soldier  in  the  Union  army, 
from  that  State.  Oscar  Eldridge  is  a  resident 
of  Pine  Island,  Minn.  Calcina  was  the  first  wife 
of  H.  M.  Curtis,  and  died  at  Spring  Prairie,  Wis. 
Sarah  Ann,  Mrs.  Warren  W.  Cutshall,  resides  at 
Pine  Island.  Caroline  died  when  thirteen  years 
of  age. 

Hiram  Smith  was  reared  on  a  farm,  and  began 
his  education  in  the  country  .school  of  his  native 
town.  He  later  attended  a  select  school,  taught 
by  his  uncle,  Bailey  Ormsby,  in  which  he  became 
assistant  teacher.  He  also  worked  on  the  farm  a 
part  of  the  time. 

In  1848,  our  subject  went  to  Wisconsin  to  take 
charge  of  the  East  Tro>-  schools,  teaching  there  for 
three  winters  and  two  summers.  He  then  went 
'  to  Eagle,  Wis.,  where  he  built  a  store,  and  con- 
]  ducted  it  until  1856.  With  his  father-in-law, 
Joseph  Piatt,  he  went  into  the  mercantile  Vjusi- 
ness  at  Wheaton  in  1857,  ^"'^^  continued  twelve 
years.  In  the  fall  of  1878,  he  went  to  Pine 
Island,  Miim.,  where  he  joined  his  brother-in-law, 
W.  W.  Cut.shall,  in  operating  a  sawmill.  While 
unloading  a  car  of  timber,  he  was  thrown  down, 
his  lower  limbs  being  crushed  b}-  lumber  falling 
from  the  car.  This  was  in  1881,  and  he  has  been 
compelled  by  his  injuries  to  retire  from  active 
labor  since  then.  In  partnership  with  a  nephew, 
he  opened  a  store  at  Pine  Island,  from  which  he 
retired  in  i8go. 

Mr.  Smith  was  a  delegate  to  the  State  conven- 
tion which  organized  the  Republican  party  in 
Wisconsin,  in  1854,  and  has  been  an  active  mem- 
ber of  that  organization  ever  since.  He  was  Su- 
pervisor of  the  town  of  Milton  during  the  war,  and 
was  active  in  securing  and  forwarding  recruits  to 
the  Union  army.  He  served  as  a  member  of  the 
Wheaton   Town  Council,   and  also  that  of  Pine 


.^^1 


5.° 


'^^ 


^♦" 


MRS. WM. BATES. 


William  BATi> 


PORTRAIT  AND  UIOGRArniCAI.    RliCORD. 


■35 


Island.  He  lifliK.-<l  to  Iniild  llic  cmirt  Imiiso  ami 
the  I'niversalist  Chun.-h  at  Whoalon.  ami  led  the 
choir  of  the  parish  for  many  years. 

In  1S50,  Mr.  Smith  was  married  to  Adeline 
Plait,  who  was  l>orn  in  List)on.  St.  Lawrence 
County.  N.  Y.,  and  is  a  daughter  of  Jascph  and 
Kmily  (  Hostwick  )  Piatt,  natives  of  Conneiticut 
and  \'erniont,  resjKxnively.  Her  paternal  anees- 
tors  were  of  tlie  family  for  whom  PlattshurK. 
\.  v..  was  name<l.  The  ei^jht  diildren  of  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Smith  are  all  living  and  hapjiily  settled 
in  life.  Callie  A.  is  the  wife  of  A.  1>.  Kelley.  of 
Wheaton.  where  Jay  P.,  the  second,  resides  (see 
sketch  elsewhere  I.  Kmma.  Mrs.  I).  J.  Sawyer, 
also  resides  in  Wheaton.  Addie  is  the  wife  of  J. 
Klnu-r  Clark,  of  Pine  Island.  Minn.  Nettie,  the 
widow  of  HerlH.rt  Reetl.  resides  at  Winona,  Minn. 
Daisy  is  the  wife  of  Peter  Stenersfm,  a  resident 
of  Colfax,  N.  Dak.  Burton  C.  who  is  an  em- 
ploye in  the  Chicago  &  Northwestern  Railway 
Auditor's  office,  re.sidcs  in  Wheaton,  and  Kreti 
C.  is  a  merchandise  salesman  in  St.  Paul,  Minn. 

Mr.  Smith  is  a  highly  intelligent  man.  and  has 
been  ati  active  and  respected  citizen  of  every  conj- 
niunity  where  he  has  resided.  As  he  nears  the 
close  of  his  seventy-tliird  year,  he  continues  to 
take  an  interest  in  the  que.stions  of  the  day.  and  1 
.strives  to  give  his  children  and  grandchildren  the 
Ijenefit  of  his  exi)criences  and  ohsers-ations  during 
a  long  and  active  life.  | 


1^^^ 


|IM,IAM  BATES,  one  of  the  most  worthy 
pioneers  of  DuPage  County,  was  Ixini  in 
Thompson,  Windham  County,  Mass.,  on 
the  2olh  of  August,  i.Sio,  and  was  the  eldest  son 
of  William  Bates  and  Sally,  daughter  of  Kdward 
Joslin.  His  native  town  fnrnishetl  many  of  the 
early  settlers  of  DuPage  County. 

On  the  6th  of  Ai)ril,  1636,  Clement  Bates,  of 
Hertfortlshire,  ICngland,  then  aged  fort>'  years, 
landed  in  Ma.s.sachu.setts  with  his  wife  Ainie 
and  children,  and  settletl  in  Mingham.  The  lat- 
ter included  James,  Clement,  Rachael.  Jos<.-])h  and 
Benjamin.      Clement  died  in  Hingham.  Septem- 


l)er  17.  1(171.  Mis  >on  Jo.s«.])li  ,uui  wiie  Jicster 
were  the  i>arenLs  of  Joseph,  wlio  had  eight  chil- 
dren, atul  seltleil  in  that  part  of  Scituate  now 
known  as  Hanover  in  I'iy.S,  dying  there  July  y. 
1740.  Josejjh.  son  of  the  last-name<l.  married 
Mar>-  Bowker,  who  dieil  a  wid«>w,  July  30,  1759. 
Jacob  Bates,  supjmsed  to  Ik.-  the  son  of  the  la.st- 
name<l,  left  liingham  in  1 730,  and,  after  living 
at  Bellingham,  settled  at  Thompson.  Conn.,  with 
his  .sons,  John  and  Ivlijah.  The  latter  si>enl  his 
life  as  a  husbandman  in  that  town,  and  was  the 
father  of  Ce<^)rge.  Tyler,  Reul)en.  Moses.  Hlijah. 
William  and  Jacob.  Of  these.  Willrnm.  Ix>rn  in 
17.S4.  was  a  farmer,  <listinguished  as  a  very  up- 
right and  honorable  man.  and  died  in  1864.  His 
wife  died  in  March.  1.SS5,  at  the  age  of  ninety-.six 
years.  Their  children  were  William,  W'in.sor  and 
Walter,  llie  first  being  he  whose  name  heads  this 
article. 

William  Bates  was  accu.stome<l  to  farm  life 
until  failing  health  compelled  him  to  retire,  in 
i860,  when  he  came  to  Wheaton  to  resitie.  His 
early  years  did  not  varv  from  those  of  New 
England  youths  in  rural  neighlx»rhoiKls  at  the 
Ixfginning  of  this  centur\-.  He  assi.sted  in  the 
labors  of  the  farm,  and  attende<l  such  schools  as 
there  were  in  his  native  town  in  the  intervals. 
Being  blesseil  by  nature  with  a  sound  mind  and  a 
desire  for  knowletlge,  he  read  diligently,  and  lie- 
came  a  well-infonned  man.  On  reaching  the  age 
of  eighteen  years  he  left  the  [laternal  homestead, 
and  was  einj>loye<l  for  ten  years  at  farm  lalxjr. 
In  1837.  having  a  small  capital,  he  set  out  for  the 
West,  and  l(x-ate<l  a  claim  to  (iovennnent  land  in 
Winfield  Township,  DuPage  County,  of  which  he 
l)ecanie  the  po.s.ses,sor  in  due  lime,  and  here  he 
lived  and  successfully  toiled  until  his  removal  to 
Wheaton,  as  iK-fore  related.  For  the  last  eight 
years  of  his  life  he  was  confinetl  to  the  house,  and 
for  nearly  three  years  never  left  his  r<M)m.  His 
death  occurre<l  as  the  result  of  juralvsis,  Septem- 
l)er  10,  1885. 

On  tlie  iithof  August,  is.Vv.  Mr  Bates  mar- 
rie<l  Mis>.  Martha  Chadwick,  who  was  born  Ajiril 
I,  1S19.  in  \'ernn»nt.  Her  parents,  Joseph  and 
Polly  (  Fish  i  Chadwick.  who  were  pioneers  in  the 
settlement  of  Milton  Township.  DuPage  County, 


236 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


coming  hither  from  Vermont,  were  married  in 
Randolph,  Orange  County.  \'t.  They  were  bom 
January  26,  1781,  and  April  2,  1781,  respectivelj', 
and  died  at  Wheaton,  November  15,  1851,  and 
March  4,  1868,  respectively.  None  ofthe  three  sons 
of  William  and  Martha  Bates  reached  the  age  of 
three  years.  Their  names  were  Justin  C,  George 
H.  and  William  Francis.  The  third  child,  Emma 
L.,  born  September  29,  184S,  cared  for  her  aged 
parents  through  their  weakness  and  infirmities, 
and  still  i:eside.s  in  Wheaton.  Mrs.  Bates,  who 
was  much  worn  and  broken  by  her  husband's  long 
illness,  died  September  19,  1887.  She  was  the 
helpmate  and  coadjutor  in  every  good  work  of  a 
noble  and  useful  man. 

Mr.  Bates  was  one  of  the  early  sheriffs  of  the 
county,  and  was  always  active  in  sustaining  the 
peace  and  dignity  of  the  State.  His  heart  was 
ever  enlisted  in  all  movements  for  the  elevation 
and  ennobling  of  mankind.  He  was  an  earnest 
temperance  worker,  and,  being  anxious  for  the 
emancipation  of  the  unfortunate  slave,  he  braved 
the  taunts  of  man}-  in  espousing  the  cause  of  abol- 
ition, and  was  one  of  the  first  to  join  the  Repub- 
lican party  at  its  inception.  He  was  early  iden- 
tified with  the  Methodist  Church,  and  joined  the 
We.sley an  movement,  a  natural  con.sequence  of  his 
abolition  views,  remaining  with  the  Wesleyan 
Church  until  the  close  of  his  life.  His  example 
should  be  an  in.spiration  to  the  youth  ofthe  land. 

e>  ^■^<.  J,,>F='  ,^  g 

g  [=u  <r  T  >■  t3         '       s> 

■^  ENJAMIN  CONGLETON,  fifth  child  of 
C\  Mark  Congleton  (see biography  elsewhere ) , 
_J  was  born  in  Luzerne,  Pa.,  January-  10,  1846, 
and  has  been  a  resident  of  DuPage  County  since 
he  was  fourteen  years  old.  He  remained  with 
his  parents  on  the  farm  until  he  was  twenty-three 
years  of  age,  attending  the  common  school,  and 
completing  his  education,  preparaton,-  to  teaching 
in  the  Normal  School  at  Valparaiso,  Ind.  Begin- 
ning at  the  age  of  twenty-four,  he  taught  twelve 
terms  in  the  district  schools  of  Illinois.  In  1 88 1 , 
he  engaged  in  the  livery  business  at  Wheaton, 
where  he  still  owns   the   building  where  he  did 


business  and  continued  ten  years.  About  a  year 
before  he  sold  out  at  Wheaton,  he  established  a 
similar  undertaking  at  Oak  Park,  where  he  is  still 
doing  a  successful  business.  He  is  also  interested 
in  the  express  business  in  Chicago,  and  is  a  part- 
ner with  his  younger  brother  in  conducting  a 
lunch-room  on  Dearborn  Street,  Chicago.  Mr. 
Congleton  confines  his  attention  to  business, 
wherein  lies  the  secret  of  his  success,  and  never 
meddles  with  politics  ftirther  than  to  discharge 
the  manifest  duty  of  every  citizen  by  voting,  and 
gives  his  franchise  on  questions  of  public  polity 
to  the  Republican  party.  He  is  a  member  in 
good  standing  ofthe  Baptist  Church  at  Wheaton. 


e-^+^p-- 


6]RIEL  CORBIN  LOVELESS,  a  prominent 
L_|  early  resident  of  Illinois,  was  born  in  Poult- 
I  I  ney,  Vt.,  April  15,  1812.  His  grandfather, 
Elijah  Loveless,  was  a  native  of  Dutchess  County, 
N.  Y.,  the  son  of  an  Englishman  who  came  from 
London  about  1720,  and  settled  on  a  farm  in  that 
county'.  Elijah  Loveless  was  a  man  of  very  pow- 
erful physique,  weighing  over  two  hundred 
pounds,  and  of  mild  disposition,  never  using  his 
prowess  to  brow-beat  others  or  to  punish  any- 
body. He  entered  the  sen-ice  of  the  mother 
country  in  the  French  and  Indian  War  at  the  age 
of  sixteen  years,  and  aLso  ser\-ed  the  colonies 
seven  years  in  the  Revolution.  At  twenty-one 
he  settled  in  \'ermont,  and  afterward  married 
Hannah  Spaulding,  who  was  boni  in  Middle- 
town,  Rutland  County,  that  State.  Two  of  his 
sons,  Stephen  and  David,  entered  the  Revolu- 
tionary array  as  soon  as  they  reached  the  age  of 
sixteen,  the  former  ser\-ing  five  3'ears,  and  the 
latter  three.  Stephen  was  killed  soon  after  that 
war,  in  dislodging  a  pine  tree  which  had  fallen 
across  another  tree.  Elijah  Lovele,ss  was  a  shoe- 
maker, and  made  .shoes  for  the  army  during  the 
winter  while  in  the  Revolution.  Soon  after  his 
marriage  he  settled  in  Saratoga  County,  N.  Y., 
where  he  died  in  1828,  aged  nearly  eighty-five 
years.     His  wife  died  in  1815,  when  over  seven t)- 


PORTRAIT  AND  lilUGRAl'HICAI.    RECORD. 


years  old.     Tlu-\    were  iiieiiitK.r.-"  <>i    the  Hapti.st 
Church,  and  had  .seven  children. 

John,  fifth  child  of  Klijah  I^>veles.s.  was  l)ont 
at  Stillwater.  Sarat  >ga  County,  \.  Y,  July  «, 
1772,  and  pas.setl  most  of  his  life  there.  In  early 
life  he  engaged  in  lnn>l>ering.  and  later  he  settled 
on  a  fann  in  Hadle\,  Saratoga  County,  where  he 
die<l  July  ,v.  i.*<5i>.  He  also  workeil  at  sIum;- 
making  in  the  winter.  His  second  wife.  Eliza- 
Ik-iIi  Holden.  was  l)oni  in  Shirley.  Worcester 
County.  Mass.,  and  was  a  daughter  of  Amos  and 
Sally  (Blood)  Holden.  of  English  descent.  By 
his  first  marriage.  Mr.  Loveless  had  eight  chil- 
dren, and  by  the  second  four,  two  of  the.se  <lying 
in  infancy.  John  H..  one  of  the  sur\ivors,  was  a 
Freewill  Baptist  jireacher  for  thirty-five  years, 
most  of  the  time  in  Warren  and  Saratoga  Conn 
ties.  For  a  short  time  he  preache<l  in  Ashtabula 
and  Jefferson  Counties,  Ohio,  and  die<l  in  Warren 
County.  N.  V..  in  August.  1.S71 ,  being  nearly 
sixty-two  years  old.  An  older  son  of  John  Love- 
less was  also  fjr  thirty-six  years  a  clerg>inan  of 
the  same  .sect. 

Ariel  C,  youngest  son  of  John  Loveless,  pas.setl 
most  of  the  first  forty  two  years  of  his  life  in  Had- 
ley.  He  was  twelve  years  old  when  his  father 
settled  on  the  farm  in  that  towni,  and  he  remained 
at  home  until  he  reacheii  his  majority,  attending 
the  district  scho<.>l  until  twenty.  He  served  seven 
years  as  drtimmer  in  the  '  Rifle  Grays,"  a  militia 
aimpany  of  Saratoga  County,  and  came  near  tak- 
ing part  in  the  Black  Hawk  War.  His  amipany 
was  under  orders,  but  the  capture  of  Black  Hawk 
by  the  I'niteti  States  forces  put  an  end  to  the  oc- 
casi(m  for  its  .ser\'ice.  The  principal  occupation 
of  Mr.  I^jveless  has  always  been  farming.  For 
manv  years  he  owne<l  and  tilled  a  farm  in  Had 
le>-,  Saratoga  County.  In  1S51  he  visited  Illi 
nois,  and  three  years  later  moved  to  this  State 
with  his  family,  arriving  at  Klgin  Decemln-r  i. 
1S54.  For  five  years  he  rented  land  in  Hanover. 
Cook  County,  and  then  purchaseti  a  farm  in  Plato. 
Kane  County,  which  he  kept  and  ojieratc-*!  twenty 
years.  In  December,  iH«3,  he  moved  to  Wheaton 
and  remained  five  years,  and  since  then  has  dwelt 
at  St.  Charles.  Klgin  andWheaton. 

DccemlKT  14     i.SvvMr    I.ii\c-lcs.>  married  lili/a 


Jane  t'jra\  .   a   native  <if  Hadle\,  daughtci  oi   .>u- 
phen  and  Helen  1  Shaw  <  dray,  of  Columbia  Couii- 
t\ ,  N.  V       She  was  liont  April  6,  1.S16,  and  died 
in    Jaiuiary,     i,s,S,s.      Five   of  the  ten  chiMreii  of 
Mr.  and    Mrs.  Loveless  are  still  living.      Alvira, 
wifeof  Charles  Wesley  Fletcher,  dieil  at  Klgin  De 
ceml)cr    2<S,    i.Si).;:  ."sarah.    Mrs.    S\  Ivester  Ham- 
mers, resides  in  Floyd  Count)  ,  Iowa;   Braman  re- 
sides in  Wheaton;   Rachel,  wifeof  John  Fletcher, 
and   Hannah.    Mrs,  John   Carr,   resitle  in    Klgin: 
John    died    ai    the  age  of  fourteen:  Orcelia   died 
when  a  year  old,  and  Francelia  at  twenty;  Charles 
Fremont    resides    at  Wheaton :  and  Artelle  died  of 
diphtheria  when  fourteen  years  old. 

At  the  age  of  twenty  years,  Mr.  Loveless  united 
with  the  MetlxKlist  Church,  and  twelve  years 
later  ji>inctl  the  Wesley  an  movement.  He  asso- 
ciated with  the  Whig  party  in  politics,  casting 
his  first  Presidential  vote  for  f len.  William  Henrj- 
Harrison  at  the  age  of  twentv  -eight.  Joining  the 
Republican  party  at  its  inception,  he  continued 
that  allegiance  until  1S92,  when  he  sniip:)rted  the 
Prohibition  ticket.  He  was  a  Justice  of  the  Peace 
for  nine  years  in  Saratoga  County,  and  was  elected 
to  that  position  in  i.S.So  in  Plato,  but  removed 
horn  that  town  before  his  term  of  .ser\-ice  expired. 
Now.  near  the  completion  of  his  eighty-second 
year.  Mr.  Lo\ele.ss  is  a  vig<irous and  clear- minded 
man.  and,  though  retired  from  active  life,  takes  a 
keen  interest  in  all  questions  of  the  day.  His  life 
has  l>een  a  consistent  and  useful  one,  and  has  ex- 
tended far  iK-vond  the  allotted  years  of  man. 


}i-^ 


(=_ 


Ri  i|U;KT  W.M.l.S  O.VTlvS.  aproniineiil  early 
resident  of  Dnl'age  County,  was  iKini  in 
Slater\'ille,  Tomkins  County,  N  V  (now- 
known  as  Slater  Springsi,  on  Octobir  1 5 .  1.S35. 
His  parents,  I^-vi  and  Nancy  1  Gould  1  Gates, 
were  natives  of  Worcester  and  North  Adams, 
Mass..  respectively,  were  marrieil  at  North  Ad- 
ams, and  settle<l  in  Slaterville.  where  Mr.  Gates 
was  a  carpenter  for  over  thirty  years.  In  1855, 
he  i-ame  to  Illinois.  an«l  after  s]K-nding  a  short 
tinie  at    Dundee   and    Klgiii.  Kane  County,  went 


238 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


onto  a  farm  in  Bloomingdale,  DuPage  County,  in 
1857.  He  died  there  in  1859,  aged  fifty-three 
years.  His  wife  survived  him,  dying  at  the  age 
of  seventy-two,  in  1877.  Both  were  members  of 
the  Congregational  Church,  and  Mr.  Gates  was 
an  ardent  Free-soiler  and  Republican,  though  affil- 
iating in  early  life  with  the  Democratic  party. 
Their  seven  children  are  all  living,  as  follows: 
Almira  (Mrs.  Henry  Hadlock),  of  Elgin,  111.; 
Stillman  J.,  of  St.  Louis,  Mo.;  R.  W.,  ofWheaton; 
Sarah  (wife  of  John  Morrison) ,  of  Chicago;  Helen 
(Mrs.  Melvin  J.  Davis),  of  Madison,  Neb.; 
Charles  W.,  of  Elgin,  111.,  and  Charlotte  (Mrs. 
John  Hugett),  of  Batavia,  111. 

Robert  \V.  Gates  passed  his  boyhood  in  Slater- 
ville,  N.  Y.,  where  he  attended  the  district  and 
.select  .schools.  At  the  age  of  sixteen  years  he  be- 
gan learning  his  father's  trade,  at  which  he 
worked  in  sununer,  continuing  his  studies  for  a 
time  during  the  winter.  He  was  in  his  twentieth 
year  when  the  family  came  to  Illinois,  and  contin- 
ued to  work  at  his  trade  until  his  father's  death, 
when  he  operated  the  farm  for  a  year,  later  re- 
suming carpenter  work. 

In  the  fall  of  1 86 1,  he  enli.sted  in  Company  D, 
Eighth  Illinois  Cavalry,  and  served  until  July, 
1865,  in  the  war  for  the  preservation  of  the  Ihiion. 
He  went  out  as  Quartermaster-Sergeant  of  the 
company,  and  after  six  months'  service  was  pro- 
moted to  the  same  position  in  the  regiment.  In 
July,  1864,  he  was  made  Quartermaster  of  the 
regiment,  with  rank  of  Fir.st  Lieutenant,  in  which 
capacity  he  served  until  the  close  of  the  war,  hav- 
ing re-enlisted  in  January ,  1 864,  and  ser\-ed  nearly 
four  years  from  the  time  of  enlistment. 

Returning  to  Bloomingdale  after  the  war,  Mr. 
Gales  operated  a  cheese  factory  in  that  township 
for  five  years.  He  then  purchased  a  wagon  and 
blacksmith  shop  at  the  \illage  of  Bloomingdale, 
and  carried  on  the  business  of  building  and  re- 
pairing vehicles  for  fifteen  years.  After  spending 
three  years  in  building  operations  at  Elgin,  he 
came  to  Wheaton,  in  August,  1886,  and  in  the 
following  November  opened  a  furniture  and  un- 
dertaking establishment,  which  he  has  conducted 
successfully  since.  Being  of  a  genial  and  straight- 
forward disposition,  he  speedily  won  the  good-will 


of  the  community,  and  is  esteemed  as  an  upright 
and  useful  citizen.  For  many  years  Mr.  Gates 
was  identified  with  the  Baptist  Church  at  Bloom- 
field,  but  is  not  now  affiliated  with  any  organiza- 
tion. While  resident  there,  he  served  nine  years 
as  Justice  of  the  Peace,  an  evidence  that  he  en- 
joyed the  respect  and  confidence  of  that  locality, 
and  is  now  serving  his  fourth  year  as  School  Di- 
rector of  Wheaton.  He  has  been  an  ardent  Re- 
publican since  his  majority,  his  first  Presidential 
vote  being  cast  for  John  C.  Fremont. 

In  August,  1865,  Mr.  Gates  married  Miss  Laura 
A.  Landon,  a  native  of  Bloomingdale,  this  county. 
Her  parents,  Louis  E.  and  Huldah  M.  (Farn- 
ham)  Landon,  were  born  in  the  vicinity  of  Os- 
wego, N.  Y.,  and  .settled  in  Bloomingdale  in  1837, 
subsequently  removing  to  Wheaton,  where  they 
died.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Gates  are  the  parents  of  five 
children,  all  save  the  eldest,  who  resides  in  Chi- 
cago, being  still  under  the  paternal  roof-tree. 
Following  are  their  names  in  order  of  birth:  Nel- 
lie Adelaide  (wife  of  Frank  Congleton),  Robert 
Allen,  Harry  Wilbur,  Eugene  and  Hattie  Beach. 

Mr.  Gates  is  a  member  of  the  Grand  Army  of 
the  Republic,  and  his  round,  jolly  face  and  ro- 
tund form  are  a  cheering  feature  of  its  meetings, 
as  in  many  another  .social  or  other  assembly. 
With  "charity  for  all  and  malice  toward  none," 
he  pursues  the  even  tenor  of  his  way,  and  is  a 
valuable  and  valued  member  of  society. 

s ■'-^r<^r^^^^^        fit 


3 AMES  ALFRED  CONGLETON,  eldest  son 
and  fourth  child  of  Mark  Congleton  (see  bi- 
ograph>-  of  the  lattei  elsewhere ) ,  was  born  in 
Ross  Township,  Luzerne  County,  Pa.,  January 
22,  1844.  He  had  not  completed  his  sixteenth 
year  when  the  family  removed  to  Illinois.  His 
education  was  obtained  in  the  public  schools  of 
Penn.sylvania  and  this  State.  August  7,  1862, 
he  enlisted  in  Company  F,  One  Hundred  and 
Fifth  Illinois  Infantry,  for  three  years'  .sen'ice, 
and  was  mu-stered  out  in  June,  1S65.  This  regi- 
ment saw  hard  .service  through  the  whole  period 
of  its  enlistment,  Mr.  Congleton,  who  was  made  a 


Emma  L.  Bates. 


(Photo-d  by  Mills.j 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


2i9 


Corporal,  doing  his  pari.  From  Resaca  to  Atlanta, 
in  the  summer  of  1.S64.  the  fighting  was  ahuust 
cx)ntinnous.  He  went  with  .Sherman's  army  in  its 
triumphal  march  to  the  sea.  and  uj)  through  the 
Carolinas  to  Richmond,  Va..  taking  part  in  the 
Grand  Review  at  Washington,  and  was  mus- 
teretl  imt  June  7.  i.s<\s.  All  this  was  not  accom- 
plished without  hardship  and  .severe  fighting  by 
the  way.  but  there  was  no  complaint  from  the 
brave  I'nion  soldiers,  for  they  knew  they  were  on 
the  way  back  to  their  homes,  and  their  valor  had 
preser\-ed  the  Old  Flag,  l-'ollowing  is  a  list  of 
the  engagements  in  which  Mr.  Congleton  took  part 
with  his  regiment,  as  part  of  the  First  Brigade. 
Third  Division.  Twentieth  Army  Corps;  Resaca. 
Cas.sville,  Dallas.  Kenesaw  Mountain,  Culp's 
Farm.  Golgotha  Church,  Xew  Hojie  Church, 
Peach  Tree  Creek,  Lawtonville,  siege  of  Atlanta, 
Savannah,  Averyslwro  and  Benton ville. 

After  a  military  senice  of  two  years  and  nine 
months,  Mr.  Congleton,  like  thousands  of  others, 
returned  immediately  to  jjeaceful  pursuits.  He 
spent  a  year  on  the  home  farm,  and  in  the  spring 
of  1 866  he  l)egan.work  with  O.  A.  Verbeck,  a 
builder  of  Bloomingdale,  soon  Ix-coming  master  of 
the  trade,  which  he  followed  about  three  years  at 
that  time.  In  1869,  he  engaged  again  in  farm- 
ing, and  rented  land  for  four  years,  three  years  of 
the  time  in  Kane  County.  He  .spent  the  year  1873 
in  working  at  his  trade  in  Chicago,  and  Bloom- 
ingdale, and  then  for  two  years  tilled  the  home 
farm.  He  spent  the  summer  of  1874  in  making 
cheese  at  Freeland  Corners,  DeKalb  County,  and 
in  the  fall  of  that  year  moved  to  Sycamore, 
where  he  followed  his  trade  for  a  year.  He  next 
tille<l  the  old  farm  two  years,  and  made  cheese 
and  butter  at  Bloomingdale  until  Decemlx;r,  1882. 
when  he  moved  to  Wheaton,  where  lie  has  ever 
since  dwelt.  For  nearly  a  year  he  operated  the 
creamery  of  the  Wheaton  Creamery  Company, 
and  has  ever  since  been  employetl  in  building  ex- 
cept fora  year,  Ix-ginning  Jidy,  1887,  when  he  was 
in  partnership  with  his  brother  in  conducting  a  liv 
er>  business.  He  is  a  skillful  cari>enter.  and  has 
no  lack  of  employment  when  the  weather  will 
permit  building  operations.  The  confidence  re- 
posed in  him  by  his  fellow-citizens  is  evidenced  b\ 


the  fact  thai  lie  has  ser\-ed  three  years  as  Tax 
Collector,  the  first  year  in  Bloomingdale,  ami  two 
>ears  in  Milton  Township.  He  is  ai  r.rdent  Re- 
publican in  political  sentiment,  and  is  a  communi- 
cant of  the  Baptist  Church,  and  a  member  of  the 
Grand  .\rm\  of  the  Rei)ublic. 

On  the  2-lh  of  May.  1869.  Mr.  Congleton  was 
married  to  Miss  Ivlina  I.ucinda  Hemenway.  a  na 
live  of  this  county,  born  in  Wayne  Tc)wiisliip 
December  26,  1845.  Her  parents.  Henry  Bud- 
long  and  Eunice  (Guild)  Hemenway,  were  early 
residents  of  that  township.  Klijah  and  Amy 
(Budlong)  Hemeiiwa\  .  parents  of  Henry  B., 
came  with  the  son  to  Wayne  in  1838,  and  kept  a 
hotel  there  in  a  log  building  in  the  ])ionecr  days. 
They  were  natives  of  Massachusetts,  as  was  Mrs. 
Congleton' s  mother.  (See  Guild  genealogy  else- 
where in  tliis  work.  1 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Congleton  are  the  parents  of  three 
children,  namely;  James  Franklin,  who  was  born 
at  (iray  Willow,  Kane  County.  111.,  and  married 
Miss  Nellie  Gates  (see  sketch  of  R.  W.  Gates)  at 
Wheaton,  April  6,  1892;  Charles  F^dgar,  boni  at 
Freeland  Corners.  DeKalb  County.  111..  Septem- 
ber 15,  1874;  and' Cora  I\llen,  born  at  Blooming- 
dale. DuPage  Count),  111..  .-Kugust  12,  1878. 
Their  jileasant  home  on  Center  Street,  near  .Scott, 
was  built  in  1888.  Mr.  Congleton  built  the  next 
house  adjoining  on  the  west  in  i.'^S^,  and  sold  it 
to  his  brother-in  law.  Mr.  Durlaiid. 

Nl%NkV  I'An,.  who  is  now  living  a  retired 
life  in  Downei 's  Grove,  claims  Gennany  as 
the  land  of  his  birth,  which  occurre<i  in 
Ober.stein,  Bavaria,  on  the  19th  of  March,  1818. 
His  parents,  Michael  and  Margaret  (Schlaufman  ) 
I'aul.  were  also  natives  of  the  same  country. 
Their  famih  numbered  seven  children,  five  sons 
and  two  daughters,  namely;  Philip,  Heiirv. 
Michael.  Jncoi»,  Peter,  Maria  and  Louisa. 

( )ur  subject  is  now  the  only  surviving  niemlier 
of  the  family.  In  his  youth  he  attende<l  the  jiub- 
lic  schools  of  his  native  land  and  acquired  a  fair 
business  education.      In  earlv  life  he  was  llirowu 


240 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


upon  his  own  resources,  and  has  since  made  his  I 
own  wa>-  in  the  world.  \Mien  a  youth  of  four- 
teen, he  began  working  at  the  stone-mason's 
trade,  which  he  lollowed  in  Germany  until  1834. 
which  year  witnessed  his  immigration  to  Am- 
erica. Bidding  adieu  to  home  and  friends,  he 
crossed  the  broad  Atlantic  on  a  sailing-vessel. 
which,  after  fort\-five  days  spent  upon  the  briny 
deep,  dropped  anchor  in  the  harbor  of  Quebec. 
Mr.  Faul  at  once  went  to  Buffalo,  and  began 
working  at  his  trade  on  the  Erie  Canal,  being 
thus  employed  for  seven  years. 

During  that  time,  on  the  20th  of  August.  1839. 
our  subject  married  Miss  Eva  M.  Wolff,  a  native 
of  Straussburg.  Germany,  born  in  1820.  Their 
marriage  was  celebrated  in  Buffalo,  and  was 
blessed  with  a  family  often  children:  Fred,  who 
died  in  1876;  Henn.-,  a  resident  of  Englewood. 
111.:  Catherine,  who  died  in  1891:  Louisa,  wife  of 
D.  D.  Escher.  of  Downer's  Grove:  Lewis,  who 
died  at  the  age  of  sixteen:  Leah,  who  died  at  the 
age  of  eighteen  years:  Lydia,  wife  of  Levi  Mertz,  a 
hardware  merchant  of  Downer's  Grove:  Martha, 
who  died  in  infancy:  Susan,  who  is  at  home  with 
her  father;  and  Ella,  wife  of  Leonard  Puffer,  an 
electrician  living  in  Downer's  Grove.  The  mother 
of  this  family  was  called  to  her  final  rest  on  the 
13th  of  April,  1888,  and  her  loss  was  widely 
mourned  throughout  the  community. 

Mr.  Faul  continued  his  residence  in  New  York 
until  1842,  which  year  witnessed  his  arrival  in 
DuPage  Count}-.  He  entered  from  the  Govern- 
ment a  tract  of  wild  land  of  eighty  acres  in  Down- 
er's Grove  Township,  one  mile  east  of  the  city  of 
that  name,  and  at  once  began  the  development  of 
a  farm.  Xot  a  furrow  had  been  turned  upon  his 
land,  but  the  barren  tract  was  soon  transformed 
into  rich  and  fertile  fields,  and  for  twentj--eight 
>ears  he  successfully  engaged  in  the  cultivation 
of  that  farm,  making  it  a  valuable  and  desirable 
place.  On  the  expiration  of  that  period,  in  1870, 
he  removed  to  Downer's  Grove,  where  he  has 
since  made  his  home,  and  where  he  is  now  living 
a  retired  life.  In  politics,  he  is  a  supporter  of 
Republican  principles,  and  has  sensed  as  a  mem- 
ber of  the  School  Board,  but  the  greater  part  of  j 
his  time  and  attention  has  been  devoted  to  his   ; 


biisiness   interests.     In  his  earlier  years  his  life 

was  a  ^•er^•  bus}.-  one  and  he  was  an  enterprising 
and  progressive  farmer,  who  b\-  his  well-directed 
efforts  won  the  competence  which  now  enables 
him  to  enjoy  a  well-earned  rest. 


^ 


[^ 


^i^ 


QOHX  KOSTRZESKI,  one  of  the  reprcsenta- 

I  live  and  enterprising  business  men  of  Down- 
0/  er's  Grove,  who  is  now  engaged  in  dealing 
in  real  estate,  is  a  native  of  Poland.  He  was  born 
in  Gostyn.  on  the  23d  of  October,  1840,  and  in  his 
youth  remained  with  his  parents,  working  in  a 
factory  which  was  owned  by  his  father.  After  he 
had  arrived  at  man's  estate,  he  was  married,  on 
the  25th  of  November.  1865,  the  lady  of  his 
choice  being  Miss  Josie  Kregielska,  who  was  born 
in  Kozmin,  Poland. 

The  young  couple  began  their  domestic  life  in 
their  native  land,  and  there  continued  to  reside 
for  a  number  of  years,  Mr.  Kostrzeski  working  in 
the  facton-  where  he  had  been  employed  since 
his  early  youth.  He  there  continued  until  thirt}-- 
one  years  of  age,  when  he  determined  to  seek  a 
home  and  fortune  in  America.  In  1871  he  bade 
adieu  to  his  family  and  friends  and  crossed  the 
broad  Atlantic.  After  three  months  spent  in  a 
factor}.-  in  Manistee.  Mich.,  he  went  to  Chicago, 
where  he  opened  up  a  barber  shop.  From  that 
place  he  came  to  Downer's  Grove,  and  purchased 
upwards  of  eighty  acres  of  land  adjoining  the  citj- 
limits,  which  he  has  laid  out  in  town  lots,  naming 
the  addition  Gostyn,  after  his  birthplace.  Since 
that  time  he  has  engaged  in  dealing  in  real  estate, 
and  has  met  with  good  success  in  his  undertak- 
ings. 

Unto  our  subject  and  his  wife  was  bom  a  fam- 
ily of  twelve  children,  six  of  whom  died  in  early 
childhood.  The  others  are:  Roman,  who  is  now 
engaged  in  the  real-estate  business  in  company 
with  his  father:  Maggie,  now  the  wife  of  Stanis- 
laus Burns,  an  engineer  and  machinist  living  in 
Chicago;  Antonine,  at  home;  Josie.  Lottie  and 
Stanislaus,  who  complete  the  famih-. 

Mr.  Kostrzeski,  his  wife  aud  children  are  mem- 


HoK.   Charles  Ccrtiss. 


PORTRAIT  AND  UIOGRAFHICAL    RECORD. 


243 


bers  of  St.  Marie's  Polish  Catholic  Church,  to  the 
supixjrt  of  which  he  contributes  lilx>rally.  in  fact 
the  hi lusc  of  worship  was  erected  through  his  in- 
strumentality. In  his  {x)litical  views,  he  is  a  Re- 
publican, and  warmly  advocates  the  principles  of 
that  party,  dojnjj  all  in  his  power  to  insure  its  suc- 
cess. Our  subject  is  a  self-made  man,  who  started 
out  in  life  empty-handed,  but  has  now  worked  his 
wa\  upward  from  a  humble  position  to  one  of 
affluence.  By  industry-  and  perseverance  he  has 
overcome  the  difficulties  in  his  path  and  achieved 
a  prosperity  which  is  certainly  well  merited.  He 
is  now  doing  a  good  real -estate  business  and  is 
recognized  as  one  of  the  valued  citizens  of  the 
communitv. 


^^^ 


(^ 


^=j 


HON.  CHARLES  CURTISS.  of  Downer's 
Grove,  has  l)een  prominent  in  business,  so-  ; 
cial  and  jx>litical  circles.  He  is  now  Presi- 
dent of  the  Farmers'  and  Merchants'  Bank,  and 
deals  quite  extensively  in  real  estate.  As  he  is 
recognizetl  as  one  of  the  leading  and  influential 
citizens  of  the  community,  we  take  pleasure  in 
presenting  this  record  of  his  life  to  our  readers. 
He  was  boni  November  3.  1828.  in  Royalton, 
\t..  and  is  the  fourth  in  a  family  of  five  sons 
bom  unto  Samuel  and  Mar>-  ( Hatch  1  Curtiss. 
The  father  wa.s  a  native  of  Connecticut,  but  when 
a  small  child  was  taken  b>-  his  parents  to  \'er- 
mont.  where  he  was  reared  ou  a  fanu.  He  was 
a  volunteer  foi  the  War  of  1812,  and  started  for 
Plattsburg,  but  the  battle  was  over  ere  his  ar- 
rival. His  father  was  a  seaman,  and  on  one  occa- 
sion was  made  a  prisoner  by  the  British  and 
taken  on  board  a  British  war-ves.sel.  but  when 
the  ship  was  anchored  about  three  miles  from  the 
West  Indies,  he  made  his  escape  and  swam 
ashore.  For  six  days  he  was  without  food.  He 
was  also  a  native  of  Connecticut,  and  his  grand-  , 
father,  a  native  of  England,  was  the  founder  of 
the  family  in  America,  having  crossed  the  At- 
lantic from  the  mother  country  in  1680. 

In    Vermont,  Samuel    Curtiss    married    Miss 
Hatch,  a  native  of  that  State.     In  the  spring  of 


1836,  they  came  to  Illinois,  locating  in  Downer's 
Grove  Township,  DuPage  County,  where  the 
father  lx)Ught  one  half  of  I.  P.  Bloigett's  cl.iim 
to  a  tract  of  land  Containing  alxmt  four  huiH.u'. 
acres.  There  was  only  one  settler  on  the  east 
side  of  Downer's  Grove  at  that  time,  and  the  en- 
tire ciiunty   was  almost  an  unbroken  wilderness. 

Mr.  Curtiss  was  a  man  of  excellent  business 
ability,  and  left  (|uite  a  large  estate.  In  jxjlitics. 
he  was  first  an  old-line  Whig,  and  afterwards 
became  a  supporter  of  the  Republican  party. 
Upon  the  farm  which  he  here  develope<l  he  re- 
mained until  his  death,  which  occurrwl  at  the  age 
of  .seventy-eight.  His  wife  pa.sse<l  away  in  1884, 
having  reachetl  the  advanced  age  of  ninety  years. 
Her  father  when  a  boy  sensed  as  a  teamster  in  the 
Revolutionar>-  War,  and  drove  the  wagon  that 
carried  the  coffin  in  which  Maj.  Andre  was  placed 
after  being  hanged  as  a  spy. 

The  children  of  the  Curtiss  family  were  Orimil. 
who  died  at  the  age  of  twenty-eight  years:  Eli  W.. 
who  served  as  County  Clerk  for  a  number  of 
years  in  Jasper  County,  where  he  is  now  living  a 
retired  life:  Henry  H..  a  farmer  of  Colorado: 
Charles,  of  this  sketch:  and  Roswell  O. .  who 
makes  his  home  in  Downer's  Grove 

Mr.  Curtiss  whose  name  heads  this  record  was 
a  lad  of  eight  sununers  when  he  came  with  his 
parents  to  the  West.  He  remembers  the  trip, 
which  was  made  ou  a  sailing-vessel  from  Detroit 
to  Chicago,  and  thence  they  went  across  the  coun- 
tr>-  to  Bern. 's  Point,  near  what  is  now  the  town 
of  Riverside  .\fter  six  weeks  spent  at  that 
place,  they  came  to  Downer's  Grove  Township, 
and  here,  amid  the  wild  scenes  of  frontier  life,  our 
subject  was  reared  t<i  manhootl.  Indians  were 
still  in  the  neighlxirhiHid,  but  the  following  year 
after  their  arrival  the  red  men  were  sent  to  a 
reser\ation  farther  west.  After  attending  the 
common  schof)ls  for  some  time,  Charles  Curtiss 
became  a  student  in  a  select  school  at  Napen-ille. 
.\side  from  his  training  in  this  direction,  his  ob- 
servation and  wide  business  exjierience  have  made 
him  a  well-informed  man,  who  pos.sesses  a  practi- 
cal kiuiwle<lge.  which  has  proven  one  of  the 
factors  in  his  successful  career.  He  remainetl  at 
home  until  he  had  attained  his  majority,  when, 


12 


244 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


in  April,  1850,  attracted  bj' the  discovery  of  gold, 
he  made  a  trip  across  the  plains  to  California 
with  his  elder  brother,  Henry,  and  engaged  in 
mining  for  three  years  in  the  Placer  diggings. 
He  then  spent  two  years  in  river  mining,  after 
which  he  returned  home,  in  1855,  and  purchased 
land  west  of  Downer's  Grove,  where  he  engaged 
in  farming  and  stock-raising. 

In  November,  1856,  Mr.  Curtiss  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Miss  Laura  A.,  daughter  of  Eldred 
Thatcher,  a  pioneer  of  this  county.  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Curtiss  became  the  parents  of  three  children. 
Addie,  wife  of  Charles  R.  Caldwell,  a  railroad 
employe  residing  in  Downer's  Grove;  Samuel, 
who  is  engaged  in  merchandising  in  Diamond, 
111.;  and  Alice  I.,  wife  of  Alfred  R.  Hickman,  a 
real-estate  dealer  of  Downer's  Grove.  The  par- 
ents and  daughters  are  members  of  the  Bapti.st 
Church,  of  which  Mr.  Curtiss  has  been  Deacon 
for  some  years,  and  the  family  is  one  of  promi- 
nence in  the  community,  its  members  ranking 
high  in  social  circles. 

Mr.  Curtiss  cast  his  first  Presidential  vote  for 
Gen.  Scott.  vSince  the  organization  of  tlie  Repub- 
lican party  he  has  been  one  of  its  stalwart  .sup- 
porters, and  has  taken  quite  an  active  part  in  po- 
litical affairs.  In  1887  and  188S  he  ser\-ed  as  a 
member  of  the  Legislature  from  this  district,  was 
Supervisor  of  his  township  for  .seven  years,  for 
several  years  held  the  office  of  Justice  of  the 
Peace,  and  for  .six  years  has  been  President  of 
the  Village  Board  of  Downer's  Grove.  It  is 
needless  to  say  that  he  proves  a  capable  official. 
He  quietly  and  faithfully  performs  every  public 
duty,  and  the  confidence  and  trust  repo,sed  in  him 
have  never  been  betrayed.  Socially,  he  is  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Patriotic  Order  of  Sons  of  America. 

Mr.  Curtiss  continued  to  make  his  home  upon 
his  farm  until  1864,  when  he  removed  to  Downer's 
Grove,  where  he  has  since  resided,  but  he  still 
superintends  the  cultivation  of  his  land.  He  is 
now  President  of  the  Farmers'  and  Merchants' 
Bank,  and  does  quite  a  large  real-estate  bu.siness. 
This  bank  is  one  of  the  .solid  financial  institutions 
of  the  county,  conservative  yet  progressive,  and 
is  now  in  a  thriving  condition.  Mr.  Curtiss  is  a 
careful  and  sagacious  business  man,  whose  enter- 


prise is  tempered  by  forethought,  and  through 
the  legitimate  channels  of  business  he  has  ac- 
quired a  handsome  property,  which  is  well  de- 
ser\'ed.  He  has  long  been  a  resident  of  this 
count}-,  and  during  the  years  that  have  come  and 
gone  he  has  won  a  host  of  warm  friends,  whose 
high  regard  he  .still  retains. 


_^)_ 


1^+^^ 


ILLIAM  BURRITT  GUILD,  eldest  .son  of 
William  K.  Guild  (.see  biography  in  this 
work  ) ,  was  born  at  Wayne  Center,  DuPage 
County,  111.,  July  30,  1850.  He  attended  the 
district  and  a  select  .school  at  his  native  place  un- 
til seventeen  years  of  age,  performing  meantime 
such  duties  as  fall  to  the  lot  of  farmers'  .sons  at 
home.  In  1867  he  entered  the  preparatory  de- 
partment of  Wheaton  College,  and  two  years  later 
took  up  the  cla.ssical  course  of  that  in.stitution, 
from  which  he  was  graduated  in  1873.  He  had 
in  the  mean  time  taught  a  country  school.  For 
two  years  after  graduation  he  was  Principal  of 
the  \Mieaton  public  schools,  and  tor  a  like  period 
following  took  charge  of  the  West  Side  schools  in 
St.  Charles,  Kane  County.  111. 

Resigning  .school  work  on  account  of  its  ill 
effect  upon  his  health,  Mr.  Guild  spent  a  short 
time  in  recuperating,  and  in  p-ebruary,  1878, 
purcha.sed  a  one-half  interest  in  the  general  store  of 
Capt.  J.J.  Cole,  at  Wheaton,  and  has  .since  con- 
tinued as  one  of  its  proprietors,  the  finn  being 
known  as  Cole  &  Guild.  This  is  the  leading  es- 
tablishment of  its  kind  in  the  city,  and  enjoys  the 
confidence  of  the  public.  Mr.  Guild  is  an  active 
member  of  the  College  Congregational  Church,  in 
which  he  has  been  for  several  years  a  Deacon. 
He  is  a  consistent  advocate  of  temperance,  and 
sustains  the  principles  advocated  b>-  the  Republi- 
can party.  He  has  .served  as  a  member  of  the 
Town  Council,  and  is  now  filling  his  second  term 
as  Alderman  of  the  .second  ward  of  the  incorj^o- 
rated  city. 

On  the  12th  of  August,  1874,  Mr.  Guild  mar- 
ried Mi.ss  Eunice  H.  Warford,  who  was  born  in 
Geneva;  Kane  County,  111.,  and  is  a  daughter  of 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


-M5 


Henn-  and  Huldah  ( Hoag )  Warford,  the  former 
a  native  of  EiiKland.  and  the  latter  of  New  York. 
The  Hoag  family  is  an  old  one  in  America,  and  is 
of  Knsli>h-yuakt-r  di-scx-iit.  The  lirsllioni  child 
and  only  daughter  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Guild.  Marion 
Eunice.  lx>ni  at  St.  Charles,  J.inuary  2S.  1S76, 
died  March  _^.  iSg'^,  while  a  student  of  Wheaton 
College.  William  Henry.  Arthur  Warford  and 
Ernest  Burritt  complete  the  family. 


lir^ 


1^ 


gARNEY  L  FRANZEN  is  one  of  the  leading 
and  influential  citizens  of  DuPajje  County, 
and  an  enlerj)rising  fanner  of  Addison  Town- 
ship, residing  on  section  11.  In  this  localit>-  he 
has  s]x-nt  his  entire  life,  his  birth  having  here  oc- 
curred October  2.  i-'<45.  Of  Gennan  lineage,  he 
is  descended  from  Herman  liemhard  Henry  Fran- 
zen.  a  native  of  Schale.  Gennany.  who.  in  1S34, 
CToss.-d  the  Atlantic  ti>  America,  and  became  the 
founder  of  the  family  in  the  New  World.  On  the 
27th  of  June,  he  landed  in  Baltimore,  and  there 
began  wi>rking  at  sixty-six  cents  (K-r  day.  Ixiard- 
ing  himself.  He  not  only  had  no  capital  but  was 
in  debt  $5.  With  his  family  he  walke<i  oneliun- 
drc<l  and  thirty  miles  from  Baltimore  to  Cumber- 
land, and  thence  to  Wheeling.  W.  \'a.,  the  hou.se- 
hold  goods  iK-ing  hauled  in  a  wagon.  The  faniilv 
then  took  passage  on  a  l>t>at  for  Cincinnati.  Ohio. 
where  the  wife  died.  Nine  months  later,  Mr. 
Franzen  started  for  Chicago.  This  was  in  18,^5, 
and  the  city  was  then  a  mere  village  on  a  wet 
prairie.  He  there  remained  for  two  years,  and  in 
iS;7  came  to  what  is  now  Addison  Township, 
Dupage  County,  where  he  took  up  land  from  the 
Government  and  l)egan  the  development  of  a  farm, 
upon  which  he  made  his  home  until  his  death, 
which  cKiurred  in  1H44.  at  the  age  of  seventy- 
seven  years. 

His  son.  John  H.  Franzen.  U-came  the  latlier 
of  our  subject.  He  wxs  boni  in  Schale,  province 
of  Westphalia,  Germany,  October  1.  iSi^,  and 
wxs  one  of  a  family  of  three  sons  and  two  daugh- 
ters. He  accompanietl  his  jiareiils  on  their  vari- 
Otis   removals,    and   at    length    reached  Dul'age 


County,  in  1837.  The  following  year  he  married 
Miss  .\nnie  E  DickhoflT,  by  whom  he  had  three 
chil  Iren.  After  her  «!eath  he  we<ide<l  Anna  C. 
Deters,  a  native  of  Gennany.  and  they  liecame 
the  parents  of  ten  children,  as  follows:  B.  I,.. 
Caroline.  Emma  C.  J  F.  D..  C.  A..  John  H. 
i I'.eceasetl  I .  Dorothea,  Gustavus  (deceased  1,  Fred 
W.  and  Herman.  The  father  of  this  faniily  en- 
gageil  in  farming  and  manufacturing  brick,  and 
he  also  built  and  ojierated  a  linseed-oil  mill.  The 
latter  he  carrietl  on  for  twenty-five  years  in  con- 
nection with  his  other  interests.  For  aUmt  fif- 
teen years  he  also  made  tow  from  flax.  He  was 
well-known  throughout  the  ojunty.  and  became 
o'.ie  of  the  leading  citizens,  l)eing  prominent  in 
public  affairs  and  in  all  interests  calculated  to 
promote  the  general  welfare.  He  was  a  faithful 
niemlxT  of  the  Evangelical  Church,  and  aided  in 
building  .several  houses  of  worship  in  the  town- 
ship. In  fKJlitics,  he  was  a  supporter  of  the  Re- 
p-.iblican  jKirtv  and  was  honore<l  with  several  offi- 
ci:il  positions,  including  that  of  Supervisor.  Af- 
ter a  useful  and  well-spent  life,  he  was  called  to 
his  final  rest  April  1,  1S93,  at  the  age  of  seventy- 
nine  years.  The  mother  of  our  subject  was  also 
bom  in  Schale,  Gennany,  and  died  at  the  age  of 
sixty  years. 

We  now  take  up  the  personal  history  of  Barney 
L.  Franzen,  who  is  so  widely  know-n  in  this 
county.  He  l)egaii  his  e<lucation  in  the  district 
schools  of  the  communit\  .  ami  afterward  attended 
Bryant  &  Stratton's  Business  College  of  Chicago. 
No  event  of  special  imjxrtance  (Kxtirretl  during 
his  lx>yho«xl  and  youth,  which  were  quietly  pa.ss«d 
upon  the  home  famj.  but  in  1870  he  married,  the 
lady  of  his  choice  being  Mi.ss  Sophia  Schniidt, 
who  was  lx>ni  in  DuPage  County.  They  tjccame 
the  parents  of  ten  children,  as  follows:  Emma 
(HOW  decea-seili.  Louise.  H.  I).,  Otto,  Barney  L. 
I  decea.seil ) ,  Melinda,  lianiey  L-.  Franklin,  Ro- 
sclla  and  Nellie.  The  mother  of  this  family  hav- 
ing dietl,  Mr.  Franzen  was  again  niarrietl,  in  1.S91. 
his  sei-ond  union  l>eiiig  with  Caroline  Eickelmann, 
who  was  lx)ni  in  Ck-miany,  and  came  to  America 
when  a  maiden  of  seven  summers.  They  have 
two  children,  Walter  and  Hattie. 

Mr.  Franzen  is  recognized  as  one  of  the  repre- 


246 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


sentative  agriculturists  of  his  community,  and  is 
the  owner  of  one  hundred  and  eighty-nine  acres 
of  rich  land,  upon  which  he  carries  on  general 
farming  and  stock-dealing.  He  was  also  at  one 
time  interested  in  selling  lands  in  Iowa  and  Min- 
nesota, and  is  now  connected  with  the  Addison 
Fanners'  Mutual  Insurance  Company.  Being 
possessed  of  excellent  business  and  executive 
ability,  he  has  been  very  successful  in  his  busi- 
ness interests,  and  has  become  the  possessor  of  a 
handsome  competence,  which  luunbers  him  among 
the  substantial  citizens  of  the  coummunity.  He 
holds  membership  with  the  Evangelical  Church, 
and  in  politics  is  a  supporter  of  Republican  prin- 
ciples. He  has  held  the  office  of  Township  Clerk 
for  five  vears,  and  has  been  Collector  for  the  same 
length  of  time.  In  all  public  positions  he  has 
discharged  his  duties  with  promptness  and  fidel- 
ity'. He  is  alike  true  in  all  relations  of  private 
life,  and  his  honorable,  upright  career  has  won  for 
him  the  confidence  and  high  regard  of  all  with 
whom  he  has  been  brought  in  contact.  He  well 
deser\-es  representation  in  this  volume,  and  it  is 
with  pleasure  that  we  present  his  sketch  to  our 
readers. 


""SJ 


i  yiARK     CONGLETON,     an    early    resident 

y  of  Bloomingdale  Township,  DuPage  Coun- 
ts ty,  was  born  in  Hardiston  Township,  Sus- 
sex County,  N.  J.,  on  the  17th  of  February, 
1814.  His  father,  James  Congleton,  was  born 
June  12,  1780,  in  Hardiston,  and  died  January 
21,  1871,  all  his  life,  except  one  year,  having 
been  passed  in  Hardiston  Township.  March  17, 
1805,  he  married  Elizabeth  Newman,  who  was 
born  March  31,  17S7,  and  passed  all  her  life  on 
the  farm  where  she  was  born,  dying  there  Janu- 
ary II,  1 86 1.  James  Congleton' s  father,  sup- 
posed to  have  been  of  English  lineage  (as  were 
the  Newmans),  went  from  Monmouth  to  Sussex 
County  when  a  young  man,  and  married  Han- 
nah Avers,  a  native  of  the  latter  county.  Eliza- 
beth Newman's  father  owned  a  thousand  acres  of 
land,    and  was  a  wealthy  man  for  his  time.     His 


wife's  maiden  name  was  Thompson.  James 
Congleton 's  family  of  eleven  children  embraced 
five  sons  and  six  daughters,  Mark  being  the  fifth 
in  order  of  birth. 

Mark  Congleton  remained  on  the  farm  of  his 
father  until  he  was  about  twenty -five  years  old, 
attending  the  di.strict  schools  in  his  earlier  years, 
and  teaching  in  the  same  .schools  in  early  man- 
hood. Augu.st  25,  1838,  he  was  married  to  Miss 
Mary  Kimber,  a  native  of  West  Town,  Orange 
County,  N.  V.,  a  locality  not  far  from  his  own 
native  place.  Mrs.  Congleton  is  the  fourth  in  a 
family  of  nine  daughters  born  to  Benjamin  and 
Keziah  Kimber,  who  were  also  natives  of  New 
York.  The  nativity  of  Samuel,  father  of  Ben- 
jamin Kimber,  is  not  now  known.  He  had  only 
two  .sons,  Benjamin  being  the  eldest,  born  April 
2,  1791.  With  his  other  son,  Peter,  he  went  to 
Ohio  about  1826,  and  died  in  that  State.  Mrs. 
Congleton 's  mother,  Keziah  Kimber,  was  a 
daughter  of  Jeremiah  and  Phcebe  Bennett,  and 
was  born  November  2,  1792.  Benjamin  Kimber 
passed  his  life  in  Orange  County,  N.  Y.,  where 
he  owned  a  small  place,  and  was  employed  much 
of  the  time  as  a  farm  laborer.  Both  he  and  his 
wife  were  natives  of  Orange  County. 

In  the  spring  of  1839,  Mr.  Congleton  moved  to 
Luzerne  County,  Pa.,  and  bought  a  farm  in  Ro.ss 
Township,  which  he  tilled  twenty  years.  He 
also  taught  school,  his  eldest  daughter  being  a 
pupil  in  some  of  his  .schools.  In  January,  i860, 
he  became  a  resident  of  DuPage  County,  locat- 
ing at  Bloomingdale.  In  the  following  spring  he 
settled  on  a  farm  on  section  22,  where  he 
remained  until  his  death,  which  occurred  August 


I,  187} 


He  was  a  successful  farmer,   and  a  re- 


spected citizen  of  every  community  where  he  re- 
sided. He,  with  his  family,  was  a  member  of 
the  Bloomingdale  Baptist  Church,  and  an  ardent 
adherent  of  the  Republican  party.  After  his 
death,  his  widow  and  children  removed  to  Whea- 
ton  to  reside,  and  they  are  among  the  useful  and 
worthy  members  of  society  in  this  city. 

Of  the  nine  children  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Congle- 
ton, two  are  deceased.  The  eldest,  Keziah  Jane, 
is  the  wife  of  Garrett  Durland,  of  Wheaton.  Sa- 
rah Elizabeth  died  at  the  age  of  four  years,   and 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


Abbie  when  two  vtarsold       For  account  of  James   1 

i 
A.,  the  fourth,  see  sketch  elsewhere  in  this  lKx>k 

Benjamin  is  enj;age<l  in  the  Iiver>'  Inisinos  at  Oak 
Park,  and  in  the  express  business  in  ChicaK'>. 
making  his  home  with  his  mother:  he  is  a 
bachelor.  Charles  Floyd  resides  in  Chica^io,  j 
where  he  is  interested  in  the  lunch-ruom  busi-  | 
ness  with  his  elder  brother.  Anuiiida.  Mari'  C. 
(  widow  of  IClza  Ruddock  ' .  anil  Huldah  Adelia  re- 
side with  their  mother  in  Wheaton. 


-=) 


^-i^i 


I.IJA.M  KELLOGG  GUILD,  one  of  the 
most  upright  and  respected  pioneers  of 
l)uPajje  County,  was  boni  in  BrookfieM, 
on  the  nation's  forty-third  birthday  annivtr- 
.  July  4.  18 19,  and  was  the  third  child  ar.d 
second  son  of  Israel  Guild.  1  See  biography  of 
the  latter  with  j;enealog>-.  1  William  K.  Guild, 
from  early  boyhood  was  largely  thrown  upon  his 
own  resources,  but.  lieing  naturally  ambitious  and 
industrious,  he  succeeded  in  gaining  a  fair  educa- 
tion by  working  for  his  board  winters,  and  at- 
tending the  New  Knglaiul  district  schools.  During 
the  summers  he  workal  on  <'anns  chiefly,  until 
learning  the  broom-maker's  trade,  which  trade  he 
followed  during  the  last  few  years  of  his  New 
England  life.  S<j  industrious  and  thrifty  wxs  h.-, 
that  in  1839,  when  the  family  came  West,  he  had 
paid  Jioo  to  his  father  for  his  time,  and  had  als<i 
quite  a  sum  In  aid  in  defraying  the  exjH.-nscs  of 
the  family  on  the  journey  to  Illinois. 

Mr.  Guild  was  in  his  twentieth  year  when  the 
family  locate<l  in  Wayne  Center,  this  a>unty,  and 
here  he  engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  brooms  in 
company  with  his  elder  brother.  Lyman.  i»roh- 
ably  nearly  the  first  undertaking  of  the  kind  in 
the  new  West.  They  also  engaged  in  fannin..;. 
taking  up  Govenmient  land  together.  During 
thc-se  first  >ear>  of  western  life,  he  sj>ent  a  con- 
siderable time  working  out  by  the  month  at 
D<jwner's  Grove  and  vicinity,  on  the  farms  of  Mr 
Blodgett  and  E.  Strong. 

In    1846.  our  subject   sold  out   his  interest  in 
their  first  claim  to  hLs  brother,  and  started  a  home 


of  his  own,  buying  a  piece  of  Government  land  in 
the  neighlM>rh<KKl,  and  adding  t<>  it  as  he  had 
means  to  buy.  until  he  Ixi-ame  the  owner  of  two 
luuulretl  and  sixty  acres  of  land.  This  he  sue 
ce-v^fully  fanned  until  1.S6.S.  when  he  removc<t  to 
Wliealiin  for  the  puq>ose  of  etiucating  his  family. 
Soon  after  removing  to  Wheaton  he  engaged  in 
the  lumlier  trade,  and  ct>ntiiuie<l  up  to  the  time 
of  his  death,  the  business  Ijeing  still  conducte<i  by 
his  two  youngest  sons.  In  this,  as  in  all  his  un- 
dertakings, he  was  successful,  being  an  intlustri- 
ous  antl  pnuient  man.  He  was  content  with  the 
result  of  consistent  and  straightfor>vard  efTort, 
was  never  tenipte<l  b\  the  glittering  promises  of 
speculation,  and  l)ccame  the  owner  of  an  estate 
which  provideil  comfortably  for  his  family  at  his 
demise.  Mr.  Guild  was  active  in  business  up  to 
within  a  short  time  of  his  death,  which  was  the 
result  of  a  three-weeks  illness,  he  Iwing  confined  to 
his  l)etl  only  about  one  week  On  the  27th  of 
Octolx'r,  1886,  surroundcti  by  his  whole  family, 
he  departed  this  life,  his  death  l)eing  the  first  in 
the  family  circle. 

At  the  age  of  fifteen  >  t-ars  Mr.  Guild  was  con- 
verted to  the  Christian  religion,  and  joined  the 
church  where  he  lived.  f>n  his  arrival  in  Illi- 
nois, in  his  twentieth  year,  he  jonied  the  Congre- 
gational Church  at  St.  Charles,  and  fsr  a  time 
went  the  eight  miles  from  his  home  to  that  jxiint 
to  attend  ser\"ices.  He  was  one  of  the  original 
members  of  the  Congregational  Church  at  Wayne 
Center,  and  one  of  its  most  active  workers.  For 
many  years  he  serveil  the  church  as  Deacon,  and 
the  Sabbath- school  as  Superintendent.  During 
his  residence  in  Wheaton,  he  was  a  meml)er  of 
the  Congregational  Church,  worshipping  at  the 
college  known  first  as  the  First  Church  of  Christ, 
and  later  as  the  College  Church  of  Christ.  He 
also  servctl  as  Deacon  in  this  church  for  a  consid- 
erable time  He  was  always  actuated  by  prin- 
ciple in  every -day  life,  and.  Ixrlieving  the  Repub- 
lican party  to  lie  an  exp<«iient  of  the  right  in 
its  warfare  for  the  emancipation  of  the  unfortu- 
nate slave,  and  in  other  matters  of  public  jxilicy, 
he  always  sustaineil  it  by  his  vote,  taking  great 
interest  in  every  campaign  from  tliat  of  Fremont 
to  Blaine,  for  the  latter  of  whom  he  cast  his  last 


248 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


Presidential  vote.  He  was  interested  in  all  re- 
form work  for  the  betterment  of  mankind,  and 
was  an  ardent  advocate  of  temperance,  aiding  the 
cause  both  by  precept  and  example. 

On  the  30th  of  May.  1844,  Mr.  Guild  married 
Miss  Lydia  Ann  Ford,  who  was  born  in  Victor, 
Ontario  Count>-,  N.  Y.,  and  is  a  daughter  of  Al- 
mond and  Sina  (Pierce)  Ford.  Mrs.  Guild's 
parents  were  bom,  respectively,  March  25,  1788, 
and  July  16,  1794.  the  mother  at  Southborough, 
Mass.,  and  were  married  at  Portland,  X.  Y.,  No- 
vember 16,  1816.  Mr.  Ford  died  at  Scotchville, 
N.  Y..  September  22,  1829,  Mrs.  Guild  being 
then  but  five  years  old,  and  his  widow  subse- 
quently married  Richard  Chadwick,  with  whom 
she  went  with  her  children  to  Wayne.  111.,  in 
1839.  (See  biography  of  Wesley  Chadwick  in 
this  work.)  Mrs.  Sina  Chadwick  died  at  \\'ayne 
Center,  November  11,  1870.  Mr.  Guild's  family 
included  four  sous  and  a  daughter,  all  of  whom 
reside  at  Wheaton.  Following  are  their  names 
in  order  of  birth  :  Sarah  Luthera,  William  Bur- 
ritt,  Edwin  Lyman,  Carroll  Wilson  and  Everett 
Almond. 

Mr.  Guild  ser\ed  as  President  of  the  School 
Board  which  erected  the  present  city  schoolhouse 
of  Wheaton,  a  handsome  and  valuable  accesson- 
of  learning.  He  was  also  a  member  of  the  Town 
Council  of  Wheaton  for  several  years.  He  was 
generous  in  everj-  good  cause,  and  in  ever>'  walk 
of  life  he  justified  the  confidence  reposed  in  him 
by  his  fellow-citizens,  and  was  a  fit  representative 
of  his  long  line  of  worthy  New  England  ancestry. 


1^+^ 


==E= 


EAPT.  JORDAN  JAMES  COLE,  a  leading 
merchant  of  Wheaton,  and  one  of  the  best 
Union  soldiers  furnished  by  Illinois,  is  a  na- 
tive of  the  State  of  New  York,  born  at  Lake  Ma- 
hopac,  Putnam  County,  April  16,  1833.  He  is  a 
descendant  of  Isaac  Cole,  who  was  born  in  Sand- 
wich, County  of  Kent.  England,  and  settled  in 
Massachusetts  in  March  1634.  Elisha  Cole,  son 
of  Isaac,  was  bom  in  Massachusetts,  and  was  a 
Baptist  preacher.     He  must  have  been  among  the 


ver}-  early  settlers  of  the  Hudson  River  Valley, 
for  his  son,  Joseph  Cole,  was  bora  in  Putnam 
County,  N.  Y. 

Berry  Cole,  son  of  the  last-named,  also  born  in 
Putnam  County,  was  the  father  of  Capt.  Cole. 
He  was  a  farmer,  and  part  owner  of  the  first 
traveling  menagerie  ever  exhibited  in  this  coun- 
tn,-.  He  was  born  January-  24,  1769,  and  died 
May  29.  1835.  He  was  twice  married,  and  was 
the  father  of  fourteen  children,  all  but  three  being 
the  offspring  of  the  first  wife.  Hannah  Lewis, 
the  first  wife  of  Berry  Cole,  was  bom  in  Putnam 
County,  Januan-  21,  1777,  and  died  December 
23,  1824.  On  the  28th  of  December,  1825,  Mr. 
Cole  was  married  to  Adah  Carl,  also  a  native  of 
Putnam  County,  born  April  11,  1796.  She  died 
at  the  home  of  Capt.  Cole,  in   Wheaton.   August 

25-  1875- 

Following  are  the  names  and  important  dates 
in  the  lives  of  Bern,-  Cole's  children:  Melinda, 
bora  September  22,  1795,  married  Selah  Ballard, 
January  5,  1813,  and  died  March  18,  1873.     Al- 


vison,  bom  October  25, 
Rebecca,  born  May  31 


1797,  died  April  9,  181 1. 
1799,  married  Stephen 
Wood  May  i,  i8i6,and  died  September  15,  1848. 
Alzada,  bom  February-  26,  1801,  married  Zeba 
Ballard  January  4,  1818,  and  died  March  11,  1859. 
Neuri.ssa,  bom  October  15,  1802,  married  A. 
Smith  in  1819,  and  died  March  10,  i860.  Abia- 
thar,  bora  September  22.  1804,  died  July  12,  1825. 
Orman  H.,  born  July  6,  1806,  died  March  3, 
1875.  Clarinda,  born  January- 6,  1809.  married 
Jonet  Genong  Januars-  31,  1829.  Uretta,  born 
September  14,  18 10,  married  Thomas  Baxter,  and 
died  August  27,  1867.  Amanda,  born  April  30, 
1813,  died  November  16,  1825.  Hannah  Jane, 
born  April  30,  1813,  married  Hosea  Carv^er,  and 
died  in  December,  1891.  Adeline  V..  bora  No- 
vember 22,  1826,  came  West  in  1854,  settled  at 
Downer's  Grove,  this  count>-,  married  John  A. 
Thatcher,  and  died  there  without  issue,  April  2, 
1884.  States  D.,  born  April  15,  1829,  went  to 
Downer's  Grove  in  1S54.  and  engaged  in  farming. 
He  married  Elizabeth  Birdsell  in  1861,  and  died 
at  Downer's  Grove  January  i,  1863,  leaving  a 
daughter.  Helen  D. 

Capt.  Cole  passed  his  youth  on  the  home  farm, 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


-49 


attending  the  district  school  uf  his  native  town  un- 
til sixteen  years  old.  He  then  entered  adr\-goi¥ls 
store  in  New  York  City,  and  remained  xs  sales- 
man three  years.  For  one  season  he  traveled  as 
advance  agent  for  Raymond's  Menagerie,  and  af- 
terward sfK.-nl  aiiulher  year  as  s.tlcsman  in  New 
York.  In  1X54.  witli  his  mother  and  brother 
and  sister,  he  came  to  DuFage  County,  settling 
on  a  farm  in  Downer's  Cirove  Township,  Inring 
then  twenty -one  years  of  age. 

On  the  outbreak  of  the  rebellion.  Mr.  Cole  en- 
listed on  the  2,vl  of  April.  1861,  in  Company  K, 
Thirteenth  Illinois  Infantry,  and  was  mustercil 
in  for  three  years  on  the  i^th  of  May,  1S61,  as 
Second  Lieutenant  of  the  company.  He  was  pro- 
moted Jan  uar\°  22,  1862.  to  First  Lieutenant,  and 
to  Captain  December  4.  1863.  and  ser\-ed  with 
his  company  over  three  years,  never  being  absent 
except  for  a  period  of  about  five  months,  when 
he  was  a  prisoner  of  war:  he  was  never  in  the  hos- 
pital, and  never  asked  to  be  e.xcusetl  from  dut\-. 
With  his  company  and  regiment,  he  marched  on 
foot  over  three  thousand  miles,  and  fought  in  si.x 
Southern  States.  He  took  part  in  thirteen  battles, 
beside  numerous  skirmishes,  eleven  of  which  were 
complete  victories  for  the  Union  troops.  His  first 
service  was  in  Missouri,  under  Gen.  Fremont, 
and  after^vard  he  was  in  the  First  Brigade,  First 
Division,  Fifteenth  Army  Corps,  commanded  by 
Gen.  Shennan,  and  later  by  Gen.  I>>gan.  and 
participated  in  the  following  battles:  I.^nox 
Fann,  Mo..  August  1.  1861;  Wet  Glaze.  Mo., 
October  14,  1861;  Lin  Creek,  Mo.,  October  t6, 
1861;  Jeffries'  MilLs,  Ark.,  May  29.  1862;  Chick- 
asaw Bayou  and  Walnut  Hills.  Miss.,  Decemb?r 
27,  28,  and  29,  1862:  siege  of  Vicksburg,  Miss., 
from  May  18  to  July  4,  1863:  siege  of  Jackson, 
Miss.,  from  July  10  to  16,  1863:  Brandon,  V'S'"  . 
July  19,  1863:  Tuscunibia,  Ala.,  in  Novenil»er, 
1863;  Lookout  Mountain,  Tenn.,  November  24, 
1863;  Missionary  Ridge,  Tenn.,  Novemljer  25, 
1863:  Ringgold  Gap,  Ga.,  Novemlicr  27.  1863: 
and  Madison  Station,  Ala.,  May  17,  1864. 

Our  subject  was  in  the  assaulting  c«>lumn  liiat 
chargeti  the  rel>el  works  at  Walnut  Hills,  in  the 
rear  of  Yicksburg,  and  with  a  few  others  reached 
a  point  within  a  few  yards  of  the  enemy's  second 


line  of  works.  Here,  with  about  one  hundred 
others,  he  was  taken  prisoner.  In  thi>  engage- 
n>ent.  six  bullets  piertx-«l  his  clothing,  all  of  theni 
grazing  the  skin,  and  one  inflicting  a  slight  wound 
in  the  side.  .-Xfter  lx.-iiig  niaile  prisoner,  he  was 
taken  to  \'ick>burg,  and  tlieiu-e  to  Jackson,  Miss., 
where  he  was  kept  confineil  on  Pearl  River 
Bridge.  One-half  of  this  bridge  had  been  previ- 
ousl\  washetl  away  by  a  freshet,  and  the  remain 
der  was  boarded  up  and  used  as  a  pen  in  which 
to  confine  prisoners.  From  here  Cai)t  Cole  was 
taken  to  Libby  Pris«in,  in  Richmond.  Va.,  and 
after  an  imprisonment  of  nearly  five  months  was 
exchanged  and  returned  at  oiict-  ta  his  regiment. 
He  was  c«»nfineti  in  Libby  Prison  about  two 
months.  He  rejoined  his  company  on  the  28th 
of  May,  1S63.  within  a  few  nxls  of  the  sjxjt  where 
he  was  capture*!  five  months  iK-fore.  and  the  next 
day  took  position  in  the  line  of  investment  around 
N'icksburg,  which  stronghold  finally  fell  on  the 
4th  of  July  following. 

Our  subject  was  in  the  as.saulting  column  un- 
der Gen.  Hooker,  at  the  battle  of  L(x>kout  Moun- 
tain, and  fought  above  the  clouds:  also  in  the  bat- 
tle of  Missionary  Ridge,  the  following  day,  and 
was  with  the  division  that  tunie<l  the  left  flank 
of  the  enenu  .  capturing  a  retiel  battery,  many 
battle-flags  and  several  thousand  prisoners.  He 
was  with  his  regiment  in  pursuit  of  the  enemy  the 
following  day,  coming  up  with  their  rear-guard 
at  Ringgold  Gap,  Ga.,  where  an  engagement 
took  place  in  which  his  company  lost  one-half  of 
those  then  present,  in  killed  and  wounded.  He 
was  honorably  mustered  out  with  his  regiment  at 
Springfield.  111..  June  17,  i.s^>4.  their  tenn  of 
ser\ice  having  expired  nearly  two  months  l)efore. 

Returning  to  Downer's  Grove.  Capt.  Cole  en- 
gaged in  the  mercantile  business  there  in  1.S65. 
On  the  15th  of  January.  i.S<vS,  he  married  .Miss 
Agnes  Palmer,  who  was  boni  in  .Mas.sachusett.s 
January  24,  1837.  She  died  at  Wheaton.  Au 
gust  2,  1S71.  without  children.  He  w.is  four 
times  elected  Supervisor  of  the  town  of  Downer's 
Grove,  and  in  1S69  was  electetl  County  Clerk  and 
Clerk  of  the  County  Court  of  DuPage  County, 
and  removed  to  Wheaton,  where  he  has  ever 
since    reside*!.     He   was   re-elected,    and   ser\'ed 


250 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


eight  years  as  County  Clerk.  At  the  expiration 
of  his  second  term,  he  re,sumed  the  mercantile 
business  at  Wheaton.  In  August,  1872,  he  mar- 
ried Susan  P.,  daughter  of  William  G.  Smith, 
whose  biography  will  be  found  in  this  work. 
Mrs.  Cole  was  born  at  White  Hall,  N.  Y.,  January 
2,  1850.  Their  children  are:  Agnes  M.,  born 
May  9,  1873,  and  Reno  Berry,  born  November 
II,  1878. 

Capt.  Cole  has  been  repeatedly  elected  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Town  Council,  and  twice  Mayor  of  the 
citj'  of  Wheaton,  and  has  been  twice  Chairman  of 
the  Board  of  Supervisors  of  DuPage  County.  He 
is  an  enthusiastic  Republican  in  politics,  his  first 
Presidential  vote  having  been  cast  for  the  first 
nominee  of  the  partj'.  Gen.  JohnC.  Fremont,  and 
he  has  supported  every  candidate  of  that  party 
for  the  Presidency  since.  He  has  been  Chairman 
of  the  Republican  County  Central  Committee 
several  times,  and  has  always  been  active  in  pro- 
moting the  success  of  the  party  and  its  principles. 
He  has  never  applied  for  a  pension  on  account  of 
his  military  services,  and  does  not  intend  to  do  so 
as  long  as  he  is  able  to  provide  a  living  for  his 
family  and  him.self  He  is  now  sixty  years  old, 
and  is  the  sole  sur\avor  of  his  father's  large  fam- 
ilv. 


-^^h{h^§ 


HON.  ROBERT  NELSON  MURRAY.  "Let 
the  record  be  made  of  the  men  and  things  of 
to-day,  lest  they  pass  out  of  memorj'  to- 
morrow and  are  lost.  Then  perpetuate  them 
not  upon  wood  or  stone,  that  crumble  to  dust,  but 
upon  paper,  chronicled  in  steel  and  in  words  that 
endure  forever. " '  The  above  applies  to  the  more 
noted  characters  of  the  pioneers  of  any  country, 
but  more  especially  to  the  pioneers  of  Illinois,  who 
freed  the  country  from  the  sa\'age  hordes,  and  by 
toils  and  privations  made  a  new  country  to 
"bloom  and  blossom  as  the  ro.se,"  and  who,  by 
the  simplicity  of  their  manner  and  sincerity  of 
their  actions,  forever  won  a  place  in  the  hearts  of 
a  grateful  and  loving  posterity. 

The   genealogy   of  the   Murray  family   begins 
with   grandfather    Murray,   a   native  of  Ireland, 


who  emigrated  to  America  with  his  wife  and  .son 
John,  settling  in  Washington  County,  N.  Y., 
where  they  became  pro.sperous  farmers,  and  died 
at  an  advanced  age.  John  Murray  was  born  No- 
vember 5,  1785,  and  was  reared  and  educated  in 
Argyle,  N.  Y..  where  he  became  a  farmer  and 
school  teacher.  He  was  a  talented  man,  and 
taught  music,  as  well  as  school,  in  Ashtabula, 
Ohio.  He  arrived  in  Naperville  July  17,  1831, 
became  a  man  of  considerable  prominence,  and 
here  died  April  8,  1868.  He  married  Amy 
Naper,  a  sister  of  Capt.  Joseph  Naper,  the  founder 
of  Naperville.  She  was  a  native  of  the  Empire 
State,  but  of  Scotch  descent,  and  was  a  true  type 
of  the  pioneer  woman,  being  well  known  for  her 
many  good  qualities  of  head  and  heart.  vShe  was 
born  January  15,  1793,  and  became  the  mother 
of  six  children:  Sarah  Ann,  Isaac,  Robert  Nelson, 
Ruth  Eliza,  Amos  H.  and  Cordelia  Maria. 

Robert  N.  Murray  was  born  in  Argyle,  Wash- 
ington County,  N.  Y.,  July  26,  1815.  At  the  age 
of  two  years  he  was  taken  by  his  parents  to  Ash- 
tabula, Ohio,  and  with  them  came  to  DuPage 
County  in  1831.  The  education  which  he  ac- 
quired was  obtained  principally  through  his  own 
efforts  and  the  instruction  of  his  father.  At  the 
age  of  seventeen  he  enlLsted,  July  19,  1832,  in 
Capt.  Joseph  Naper' s  company  of  Illinois  Mounted 
Volunteers  (commanded  by  Maj.  Buckmaster),and 
participated  in  the  Black  Hawk  War.  He  was 
promoted  to  be  Corporal,  and  was  honorably'  dis- 
charged in  Beloit,  Wis.,  about  August  15,  1832. 

Shortly  after  the  close  of  the  war  he  started  out 
in  life  for  himself  He  was  a  natural  mechanic, 
and  various  labors  in  that  direction  claimed  his 
attention.  His  name  is  connected  with  many 
points  of  historical  interest  in  this  State.  He 
helped  to  build  the  first  docks  in  the  Chicago 
Harbor,  and  also  the  first  sawmill  in  Boone 
County,  111.  He  was  a  born  leader  of  men,  tall 
and  muscular,  straight  as  an  Indian,  and  of 
splendid  physique.  He  had  an  open,  frank  coun- 
tenance, and  a  genial  smile  accompanied  the  hearty 
greeting  and  firm  clasp  of  hand,  but  when  aroused 
to  anger,  or  in  a  political  di.scussion,  his  eyes 
would  blaze  with  unusual  light,  which  would 
electrify  and  fascinate  friend  or  foe.      The  records 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL    RECORD. 


25' 


of  Cook  County  show  thai  he  \va>  a  Constable  in 
that  county,  and  in  that  capacity  was  connected 
with  many  of  tht-  stirring  events  of  pioneer  (hiys. 
Later  he  servcti  as  Deputy  Sheriff  of  Cook  Countv. 
and  in  1.S44  was  electetl  Sheriff  of  DuPajje 
County,  thirinn  which  time  he  livetl  in  the  court 
house,  for  this  section  of  the  country  was  then  in 
a  primitive  condition,  and  the  fine  public  build- 
ings of  to-day  were  unknown  factors.  While 
Sheriff  he  coUectetl  Uixes  in  DuPage  County,  and 
became  widely  and  favorably  known. 

Mr.  Murray  read  law  with  Patrick  Rallingal.  a 
noted  criminal  lawyer,  and  was  ailmitled  to  the 
Bar  in  1851.  He  rose  rapidly  in  his  profes.sion, 
and  soon  enjoyetl  a  large  practice.  He  was  one  of 
the  solicitors  of  the  famous  Burch  trial  at  NajJer- 
ville,  a  trial  note<l  for  its  length,  its  bitter  contest 
and  the  social  prominence  of  its  litigants,  and  in 
which  was  engaged  the  best  legal  talent  of  Chi- 
cago. Mr.  Murray  was  loyal  to  his  clients'  in- 
terests, prompt  in  his  attention  to  business,  an! 
cultivated  a  high  regard  for  justice  and  right. 
His  candor  and  uprightness  won  for  him  the  es- 
teem and  confidence  of  the  people,  and  as  a  fitting 
tribute  to  his  worth,  when  he  was  about  to  close 
his  professional  life,  the  people  of  this  county  in- 
sisted upon  his  occupying  the  office  of  County 
Judge.  He  served  as  such  for  one  term  and  then 
retire<l.  Mr.  Murray  was  industrious  and  pains- 
taking in  all  his  affairs,  and  by  his  industry, 
economy,  and  judicious  investments  in  Chicago 
property,  left  to  his  sur\'ivors  a  hand.some  fortune. 
In  politics,  he  was  a  faithful  I)emi>crat  of  flie  old 
school.  He  was  prominent  in  local  politics,  and 
always  an  active  worker  for  his  party.  At  the 
time  Hon.  Stephen  A.  Douglas  was  a  candidate 
for  the  United  States  Senate,  Mr.  Murray  ran  for 
Congress.  It  was  then  he  fonneti  the  acquaint- 
ance of  Mr.  IX)Uglas,  who  fre<iuenlly  visited  at 
his  hou.se,  and  this  actjuaintance  made  in  the  field 
of  politics  soon  rijxrned  into  intimate  friendship, 
whicli  extended  over  many  years,  and  was  of  a 
nature  that  honoretl  lx)th. 

In  the  meiui  time,  Mr.  Murray  devoted  his  at- 
tentio)!  to  the  practice  of  law,  and  rendered  mer- 
itorious ser\'ices  as  a  legal  atlviser  to  the  old 
friends  and  neighlxirs  in   NajK'r\ille  and  vicinity. 


many  times  without  comj)ensati(in  or  thought  of 
a  reward.  In  1X57  be  removed  with  his  family  to 
Kankakee.  111.,  where  he  engaged  ni  legal  prac- 
tice, and  for  two  terms  served  as  Mayor  of  the 
city.  He  was  recognized  as  one  of  its  leading 
men  during  his  residence  there,  and  was  hel<l  in 
ver>-  high  esteem.  It  was  through  his  instru- 
mentality that  the  first  soldiers'  monument  of 
Kankakee  was  erected.  In  fact,  there  were  few- 
enterprises  which  ser\'etl  to  lx.-nefit  the  town  with 
which  the  name  of  Judge  Murra>'  was  not  con- 
nectetl.  He  was  an  ardent  war  Democrat,  and 
soon  after  the  war  broke  out  gave  the  first  $100 
to  the  Twentieth  Illinois  Infantry  to  buy  blankets 
and  supplies.  He  furthered  the  cause  ol  the 
I'nion  in  even.'  way  consistent  with  his  political 
views,  and  did  more  for  the  women  and  children 
left  husbandless  and  fatherless  bv  the  war  than 
any  other  one  man  in  DuPage  County. 

In  1864,  Judge  Murray  returned  with  his  family 
to  Napcn-ille.  where  he  continued  to  practice  law, 
receiving  from  the  public  a  liberal  patronage. 
One  of  the  prominent  features  in  Judge  Murray's 
professional  life  was  his  antipathy  for  oppression 
of  any  kind,  and  a  dislike  for  anything  that  was 
tainted  with  fraud,  corruption  or  trick  en,-.  He 
was  rich  in  integrity  of  character.  o])en  and 
frank  in  his  dealings  with  mankind,  exacting  in 
his  demands  of  justice  and  right,  systematic  in 
his  w-ork,  and  punctual  in  his  engagements.  Pos- 
ses-sing  to  a  high  degree  these  excellent  traits  of 
manhood,  he  meriteti  and  won  in  an  unusual  de- 
gree the  confidence  of  his  clients,  who  quickly 
learned  to  admire  him,  and  relieil  unhesitatingly 
upon  his  judgment  as  a  lawyer  and  a  man.  He 
posses.sed  a  clear  aiul  active  brain,  a  large  capacity 
for  work,  and  as  a  practitioner  w-as  largely  suc- 
cessful. In  the  capacity  of  attorney  he  had 
charge  of  many  estates  for  widows  and  orphans, 
and  in  the  caj)acity  of  executor  and  legal  adviser 
rendered  much  valuable  service,  so  that  to-day  he 
is  held  in  loving  reiueiubraiice  by  all  those  who 
ever  called  on  him  in  time  of  trouble  <jr  for  legal 
atlvice.  He  h>vetl  his  fellow--men,  and  no  worthy 
applicant  left  his  office  uncomforte<l,  or  unaideil  in 
a  substantial  way.  He  was  not  ostentatious, 
and  in  his  charities  the  left  hand  seldom  knew 


252 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


what  the  right  did.  He  was  firm  in  his  convic- 
tions and  free  to  express  them,  but  behind  a  bkmt 
and  plain  exterior  were  hidden  the  noblest  quali- 
ties of  a  good  and  manly  man. 

Judge  Murray  was  a  general  favorite  with  the 
Bench  and  Bar.  He  was  the  especial  favorite  of 
the  young  attorneys  of  Kankakee,  who  delighted 
in  his  companionship,  and  enjoyed  his  jovial 
manner.  He  rivaled  Lincoln  as  a  story-teller,  and 
his  fund  of  anecdotes  seemed  inexhaustible.  He 
was  a  great  reader,  and  had  in  Kankakee  one  of 
the  finest  law  libraries  in  the  State,  which  was 
always  at  the  disposal  of  the  young  members  of 
the  Bar,  whom  he  advised  and  encouraged  in 
every  way.  He  was  always  cheerful  and  his 
presence  dispelled  gloom.  It  was  worth  some- 
thing to  have  known  such  a  man,  to  have  been 
his  companion  for  days  or  years,  and  to  have  seen 
his  inner  life,  which  is  the  real  life  of  many  men. 
Among  his  older  professional  brethren  he  was 
lovingly  called  "  Ned  Murray,"  which  in  itself  is 
a  mark  of  affection  and  esteem,  as  no  ordinary  or 
mean  man  is  ever  given  a  name  by  the  public. 
Said  an  old  pioneer  of  Chicago,  ' '  He  was  the  soul 
of  honor;  he  never  did  a  mean  thing  in  his  life; 
there  never  was  a  hfe  that  yielded  so  much  pure 
wheat  and  as  little  chaff  as  that  of  Judge  Murray. ' ' 
He  was  considered  one  of  the  leading  and  brain- 
iest attorneys  of  the  State,  and  was  consulted  and 
retained  on  many  an  important  case. 

On  the  4th  of  January,  1842,  Mr.  Murray  was 
married  by  J.  H.  Prentiss,  a  Congregational  min- 
ister, to  Louisa  C.  Sargent,  who  was  born  July 
24,  1821,  in  Rochester,  on  the  Clinton  River, 
Oakland  County,  Mich.,  and  claims  the  distinc- 
tion of  being  the  second  white  child  born  in  that 
county.  Her  parents  were  John  and  Irena  (Sweet) 
Sargent,  the  former  a  native  of  New  Hampshire, 
and  the  latter  of  Rochester,  N.  Y.  They  were 
honored  pioneers  of  Oakland  County,  where  Mrs. 
Murray  was  reared.  She  was  educated  in  Pon- 
tiac  Academy,  and  is  a  woman  of  more  than  ordi- 
nary intelligence  and  strong  traits  of  character — 
in  every  way  a  fit  companion  and  helpmate  to  her 
noble  husband.  As  early  as  1838  she  became  a 
resident  of  DuPage  County,  and  has  been  inti- 
mately identified  with  its  growth  and  prosperity. 


Three  children   have  blessed  this  union:     John 
W.,  who  died  in  infancy;  Isaac  N.  and  Irene  A. 
Isaac  was  educated  and  reared  in  Naperville,  at- 
tending the  academy    at  that  place,  being  after- 
wards   a    .student    in    Notre    Dame    and    Wood- 
stock Universities.      He  has  inherited  many  of  his 
father's  traits  of  character,  and  is  himself  a  true 
representative  of  the  pioneer  stock.     In  politics, 
he  is  also  a  Democrat,  and  is  identified  with  local 
and  State  organizations.     He  is  Vice-President  of 
the  Building  and   Loan   As.sociation,  and  is  the 
owner  of  the  two  hundred  and  forty  acres  of  land 
pre-empted  by  his  grandfather,  John   Murray,  in 
1831.     The  daughter,  Irene  A.,  was  born  Octo- 
ber 22,  1855,  in   Naperville,  was  educated  in  its 
public  schools,  and  at  Jennings  Seminary  iti  Au- 
rora, 111.,  graduating    with    high    honors    in   the 
latter  place  in  the  Class  of  '74.     She  is  now  the 
wife  of  Louis  Karcher,  a  lawyer  of  Chicago,  who 
is  enjoying  a  lucrative   practice  and.  an  honored 
place  in  his  chosen  profession.     They   have  two 
children,  Louise  Margaret  and  Leonard  Douglas. 
At  the  time  of  his  death,  Mr.  Murray  enjoyed 
the  distinguished  honor  of  being  the  oldest  living 
settler  of  Chicago.     His  early  and  continued  resi- 
dence in  the  Northwest  made  him  perfectly  famil- 
iar with  its  growth  and  history.     He  saw  Chicago 
rise  from  a  mere  village  to  a  magnificent  city. 
He  possessed  the  rare  faculty  of  an  active  and  re- 
tentive memory,  and  it   was  not  infrequent  that 
his  knowledge  was  sought  to  establish  boundary 
lines,  and  to  recall  incidents  and  events  of  early 
days.    The  clearness  with  which  he  related,  in  his 
own  peculiar  style,  the  events  of  those  pioneer 
times  has  often  made  him  the  central  figure  among 
his  associates  and  friends,  who  listened  with  in- 
terest to  his  narrative  of  those  days. 

Mr.  Murray's  death  was  caused  by  Bright's 
disease.  He  had  been  afflicted  with  it  for  years, 
yet  not  to  such  an  extent  as  to  give  him  much 
uneasiness  or  concern  regarding  his  health.  Of 
late  years  he  .spent  his  winters  with  his  estimable 
wife  in  the  South,  the  winters  in  the  North  being 
too  severe  for  him.  He  purcha,sed  an  orange 
grove  at  Palatka,  Fla. ,  where  he  resided  during 
the  winter  months  and  enjoyed  himself  among  his 
orange  trees  and  the  delightful  climate  of  that  re- 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL    RECORD. 


gion.  Such  was  his  luagiictiMii  that  alter  a  >hort 
residence  in  Florida.  pr>>nnncnl  citizens  of  the 
Slate  urged  him  to  become  a  resident  and  accept 
the  nomination  for  Congress,  which  in  that  State 
meant  an  t-lection.  But  he  was  true  to  his  native 
Slate  and  the  attractions  of  Naper\  ille.  and  re 
fused  the  tempting  ofTer. 

Judge  Murray,  in  his  social  relations,  was  a 
Mason,  and  was  held  in  the  highest  regard  by  his 
comrades  in  that  fraternity.  He  was  in  every 
way  by  nature  filled  and  qualified  to  Ix-ar  a  con- 
spicuous part  in  the  history  of  the  ci>ninuinit\ . 
and  the  prominent  positions  in  which  he  was  al- 
ways placed  showed  that  his  abilities  were  recog- 
nized. He  was  honoretl  with  official  positions, 
and  was  a  leader  in  business  circles.  He  was 
affable  and  approachable,  and  prosix-rity  did  not 
turn  his  head.  In  the  growth  and  upbuilding  of 
this  community  he  ever  bore  a  conspicuous  part. 
and  its  advancement  and  progress  were  due  in  no 
small  degree  to  his  earnest  efforts.  After  a  long, 
useful  and  well-spent  life,  he  passed  away  Sep- 
tember 13,  1891.  and  the  entire  community 
mourned  his  loss,  but  it  was  in  the  home  where 
his  absence  was  nuist  felt.  It  was  there  where  he 
was  best  understoo  i,  where  his  qualities  of  mind 
and  heart  were  best  known,  and  where  his  mem- 
ory will  forever  be  held  in  kind  and  loving  re- 
membrance. 


}^^f^'i 


B RAMAN  LOVELESS,  eldest  son  and  third 
child  of  Ariel  C.  Loveless  (see  biography  in 
this  work),  is  among  the  .succcs.sful  business 
men  of  DuPage  County  and  Chicago,  and  promi- 
nent in  charitable  and  Christian  work.  He  was 
boni  May  27,  1839,  in  Hadley.  Saratoga  County, 
N.  Y.  He  was  fifteen  years  old  when  the  family 
came  West,  and  remained  on  the  farm  with  his 
father  until  February.  1859.  when  he  started  for 
Pikes  Peak,  to  engage  in  mining,  that  "  K\  Do- 
rado" having  jiLst  lieen  discovered.  Proceeding 
by  rail  to  a  point  forty  miles  west  of  Dubuque, 
Iowa,  then  the  temiiiius  of  the  railway,  he  trav- 
eled overland,  much  of  the  way  on  foot,  to  Omaha, 


where  he  jiiineil  ;i  w.igun  tram.      *.»ii  re.n.lun^  Uie 
mountains,  he  was  stricken  with  mountain   fever, 
and  was  obliged  to  return  home.     He  again  took 
up    fanning  with    his    father    until   the   spnng  of 
1.S61.      He   had   just   rcnteil  a  fann  and  prejjured 
to  engage  in  business  on  his  owii  account,  when 
the  War  of  the  Reliellion  broke  out.      Stirred   by 
patriotic  impulses,  he  at  once  offered  his  services 
in   defense  of  the  I'nion,    and  was  enrolled  as  a 
member  of  Company  A.  Thirty-sixth  Illinois  In- 
fantry, on  the  Sth  of  August.     Although  a  mem- 
ber of  the  regimental  band,  Mr.   I.,oveless  carrietl 
a  musket  through  part  of  his  service,  taking  part 
in  some  fierce  engagements.      The  regiment  was 
sUtioned  at  first  at  Rolla.  Mo.,  whence  it  marched 
in  dead    of  winter   to    Pea   Ridge.   Ark.,  taking 
part  in  the  battle  at  that  point  under  Gen.  Sigel. 
On  the  way  to  Pittsburgh   Landing,    it   marched 
six  hundred  miles  to  Cajie  Girardeau,  Mo.,  where 
tran.sportation  was   taken   by    boat.      Arriving  at 
Pittsburgh    landing    after   the   famous  tattle,  it 
proceeded  southward,  at  one  time  marching  eigh- 
teen   miles  in  the  night  to  aid  in  investing  Cor- 
inth, Miss.     From  there  it  proceeded  to  Cincin- 
nati,  to  join   Gen.    Lew    Wallace,    but  was  soon 
transferred  to  Louisville,  where  it  became  a  part 
of  the  Second  Division  of  the  Fourth  Army  Corps, 
under  Gen.  Sheridan.      From  this  time  the  regi- 
ment participated  in  many  severe  battles,  among 
which  were  Perr>ville,  Stone  River,    Peach  Tree 
Creek.    Kenesaw    Mountain,    Dallas.    New   Hope 
Church,  Atlanta  and  Jonesboro.     The  history  of 
this  campaign  is  one  of  almost  continual  fighting, 
and  Mr.  I^oveless  witnessetl  many  scenes  of  cruel 
carnage.      He  was  mu.stered  out  September   23. 
1864,    having   more   than   served   out  his  three- 
years  term  of  enlistment,  and  without  ever  receiv- 
ing a  reprimand. 

From  1865  to  1872  Mr.  Loveless  followed  farm- 
ing near  Elgin,  in  Kane  County.  In  May,  1872, 
he  went  to  Chicago  and  engagetl  for  seven  years 
in  the  grain,  feed  and  coal  trade.  Since  selling 
out  this  business,  he  has  engaged  in  the  hotel  and 
real  estate  business  with  marked  success.  In 
August.  1882.  he  purchased  one  hundred  and 
twentv  acres  of  land  at  Turner,  and  five  years 
later  added  fortv  aiTt-s  to  this      The   entire   tract 


254 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


was  platted  as  an  addition  to  the  village  of  Turner 
in  1893.  and  is  known  as  Montview.  Many  lots 
have  alread}-  been  sold,  and  this  investment  is  i 
among  the  best  made  by  a  man  known  for  fore- 
sight and  shrewdness  in  business.  Like  many 
other  investments  in  the  neighborhood  of  Chi- 
cago, this  has  proven  a  popular  site,  and  is  vindi- 
cating the  sagacity  of  its  projector. 

Mr.  Loveless  experienced  religion  in  January, 
i860,  and  united  with  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church.  In  1883  he  began  to  extend  the  revival 
work  which  he  had  been  doing  in  a  quiet  way 
for  many  years,  and  became  a  powerful  and  much- 
sought  aid  in  evangelistic  work.  Until  failing 
strength,  in  1889,  compelled  him  to  resign  this 
work,  he  gave  his  entire  attention  to  it  and  la- 
bored in  many  Western  States,  chiefly  in  Iowa, 
Illinois  and  California.  In  this  he  was  ably  as- 
sisted by  his  wife,  a  lady  of  strong  faith  and 
spirit.  In  reviewing  his  work,  the  Cedar  Rapids 
(Iowa  )  Republican  .said,  ' '  Though  his  address  had 
no  peculiar  charm,  and  his  work  seemed  devoid 
of  the  personal  magnetism  which  characterizes 
the  influence  of  many  public  speakers,  his  earnest- 
ness and  sincerity  carried  great  power. ' '  He  still 
continues,  as  for  many  years  past,  to  do  mission 
work  in  Chicago,  and  is  an  acti^•e  temperance 
worker,  both  by  precept  and  example.  In  1888 
he  was  the  Prohibition  candidate  for  Senator  from 
the  Fourteenth  Illinois  Di.strict,  and  has  been 
three  years  President  of  the  County  Committee  of 
that  party,  and  four  years  President  of  the  Whea- 
ton  Prohibition  Club.  From  Lincoln  to  Garfield 
he  was  a  Republican,  and  is  ready  to  again  affili- 
ate with  the  Republican  party  when  it  consents 
to  e-spouse  the  Prohibition  issue. 

October  17,  i860,  Mr.  Loveless  married  Miss 
Marv  Tweddale,  a  native  of  New  York  City,  a 
daughter  of  Garlius  and  Elizabeth  Tweddale,  na- 
tives of  Whithorn,  an  island  in  the  south  of  Scot- 
land. Mrs.  Loveless  was  a  teacher  before  her 
marriage.  She  died  in  1865,  leaving  a  son,  Frank 
Ariel,  now  a  resident  of  Chicago.  On  the  3d  of 
April.  1866,  Mr.  Loveless  was  again  married,  the 
bride  being  Miss  Huldah  Elizabeth  Holden,  who 
was  born  in  Stockholm,  St.  Lawrence  County, 
N.  Y.     Her  parents,  John  and  Mary   A.    (Clark) 


Holden,  were  natives,  respectively,  of  England 
and  Gilsum,  N.  H.,  the  latter  being  descend- 
ed from  an  old  New  England  family,  dating 
from  the  landing  of  the  Pilgrims.  Three 
children  have  blcs.sed  the  second  union  of  Mr. 
Loveless,  namely:  Braman  H.,  Benjamin  E.  and 
Gertrude.  The  second  died  Februarj'  5,  1893, 
and  the  first  is  practicing  law  in  Chicago  and  re 
siding  in  Wheaton.  Mrs.  Loveless  taught  the 
finst  colored  school  in  the  North,  at  Elgin,  and 
continued  in  the  work  three  years.  She  is  active 
in  temperance  work,  and  is  an  officer  in  control  of 
several  charitable  and  philanthropic  undertakings 
in  Chicago,  independent  of  her  husband's  work, 
for  the  success  of  which  he  gives  her  large  credit. 


0' 


R.  ELIAS  CORNELIUS  GUILD,  a  success- 
ful physician  and  prominent  citizen  of  Whea- 
ton, is  the  youngest  child  of  Israel  and 
Rachael  Guild.  He  was  born  in  Conway,  Mass., 
April  10,  1832,  and  was  but  seven  years  old  when 
the  family  came  to  Illinois.  He  remained  on  the 
homestead  farm  in  Wayne  until  after  he  was 
forty  years  old,  attending  the  district  school,  Be- 
loit  College,  or  a  select  school  in  Wayne  until  he 
reached  his  majority.  He  early  manifested  a 
taste  for  .study,  and,  being  inclined  to  the  practice 
of  medicine,  took  up  its  study  without  a  pre- 
ceptor, in  the  leisure  moments  to  be  snatched 
from  the  care  of  the  farm.  His  industry  and  tal- 
ent are  evidenced  by  the  fact  that  he  acquired  an 
extensive  practice  before  he  left  the  farm  at  all. 

Entering  Bennett  Medical  College  in  Chicago, 
in  1872,  Mr.  Guild  graduated  from  that  institu- 
tion in  the  spring  of  1874,  and  has  made  the  prac- 
tice of  medicine  his  sole  occupation  since,  with 
rare  success.  After  graduating  at  Bennett,  he 
located  at  Bartlett,  Cook  County,  111.,  where  he 
conducted  a  drug  store  twenty  years,  until  March 
I,  1894.  In  1889  he  removed  to  Wheaton,  and 
in  1 89 1  purchased  the  fine  property  on  the  west 
side  of  Main  Street,  corner  of  Wesley,  where  he 
resides,  surrounded  by  an  interesting  family. 
Dr.  Guild's  success  has  been  the  result  of  his  own 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD 


255 


independent  eflfort,  as  he  has  never  alliinl  himself 
with  any  S4K-icty  xs  a  means  of  attaining;  ac<|iiaii:t- 
ance  or  standing.  His  success  in  Irealinn  unfor- 
tunate humanity  has  secured  all  the  patients  he 
can  find  lime  and  strength  to  attend.  In  1892  he 
was  the  candidate  of  the  I'rohil>ition  party  for 
representative  from  tlie  Fourteenth  Illinois  Dis- 
trict, and  his  jKipularity  is  indicated  by  the  fact 
that  he  receive*!  over  three  thousand  votes,  that 
ticket  being  .supported  by  a'  hofxrle-ss  minority. 
In  i860  he  was  electetl  Justice  of  the  Peace  in 
Wayne,  and  serve<i  fourteen  years,  being  the  last 
two  times  re-electe<l  unanimously.  His  removal 
fronj  the  county  two  years  before  its  expiration 
prevented  the  comi)letion  of  his  last  term.  The 
doctor  is  a  finn  adherent  of  principle,  and  affili- 
ate<l  with  the  Republican  party  until  he  despaire<i 
of  its  esjxiusing  prohibition.  With  his  family,  he 
is  a  communicant  of  the  College  Congregational 
Church  of  Wlieaton. 

In  1857  Dtx-tor  Guild  was  married  to  .Miss 
Alice  D.  Blair,  who  was  bom  in  1835,  at  Mus- 
selborough,  near  Edinburgh,  Scotland.  She 
came  to  America  in  1852,  with  her  parents, 
Robert  and  Jean  <  Dickson  )  Blair,  being  then  si.\- 
teen  years  old.  They  locatetl  first  at  St.  Charles, 
and  three  years  later  moved  to  Wayne,  and  after- 
wards to  Malta,  111.,  where  they  died,  the  father 
in  May,  1890.  in  his  ninety-third  year,  and  the 
mother  at  the  age  of  seventy-three,  in  1S64. 
They  l)ecame  the  parents  of  nine  children.  Mrs. 
Guild  Ixring  the  youngest. 

Of  the  nine  children  of  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Guild,  si.\ 
are  now  living.  Charles  Sumner,  the  eldest,  died 
in  his  twenty-first  year.  William  Lyman,  who 
graduated  at  the  Bennett  Medical  College  in  1884, 
and  from  the  Chicago  Honjtjeopathic  Medical  Col- 
lege in  1S92,  is  practicing  medicine  at  Wayne,  III. 
Rufus  Cornelius,  Newman  Hall,  Alice  Jane  1  Mrs. 
Braman  H.  I.AJVelessj,  Mattie  Louise  and  Hattie 
Rachael  are  all  in  Wheaton.  three  residing  with 
their  parents.     Two  died  in  infancy. 

Dr.   (iuild  is  a  man  of  medium  stature,  solid 
frame,  and  sound  intellect.      He  is  a  genial,  well 
read  man,  of  most  hospitable  and  kindly  nature, 
and  his  mere  presence  in  thesick-rcxnn  is  assuring 
to  the  invalid.      I'nder   hia  skillful    care,  the  pa 


tientwho.se  vitalit\  .-  ■!•.;  .dready  K"'"  ~<^'>lom 
fails  to  reojver.  Dr.  Guild  reveres  the  niemciry 
of  his  mother  a.s  that  of  a  most  devout  and  saintly 
w.)inan.  No  doubt  the  lietter  (jualities  of  his  na- 
ture were  clevtloped  and  strengtheneti  under  her 
loving  care. 


^-f^ 


SI 


HHNRY  DIETRICH  FISCHKR.  a  pioneer 
i.innerof  Addison  Township.  DuPageCoun- 
i\ ,  III.,  was  l)orn  in  F!storff,  Hanover, 
GL-nnany,  and  was  the  first  to  leave  his  native 
village  for  America.  In  the  spring  of  1835,  he 
bade  good-bye  to  home  and  friends  antl  made  his 
way  direct  to  Chicago,  where  he  remained  during 
tl'.at  summer.  His  father,  Conrad  Fischer,  who 
W.1S  born  in  the  same  village  as  himself,  was  a 
s;iddler,  and  Heiini-  learned  the  trade,  but  never 
followed  it  after  coming  to  this  countr>-.  As  soon 
as  he  was  able,  he  sent  for  his  parents  and  two 
brothers  and  three  sisters,  who  came  and  j(jined 
him  in  Addi.son,  where  he  .settled  in  1836. 
On  the  journey,  the  youngest  daughter,  Wil- 
h'.-lmina,  was  drowned  in  Buffalo.  N.  Y.,  by  fall- 
ing off  the  old  "  Robert  Fulton,"  a  steant-boat 
0:1  which  the  family  had  taken  pas.sage  for  De- 
troit. Heiny  D.  was  the  eldest  child.  Louisa, 
the  second,  is  the  widow  of  Henry  Bielfeld,  resid- 
ing in  Milwaukee.  All  the  others  reside  in  Ad- 
dison, namely;  Frederick  J..  Augu.st  and  Caro- 
line (Mrs.  Louis  Rathje).  Conrad  Fi.scher  died 
in  Addison  alM)Ut  1875.  His  wife,  whose  maiden 
name  was  Reinking.  precetled  him  to  the  other 
shore. 

Henr>-  D.  Fischer  remained  on  his  fann  in  Ad- 
dison until  his  death,  which  (xxnirred  in  1868,  at 
the  age  of  fifty-two  years.  He  was  rejH-atedly 
called  upon  to  fill  township  and  county  offices,  and 
enjoyed  the  coidulence  of  his  fellow -citizens  to  a 
marketl  degree.  He  was  a  mend)erof  the  I'nited 
I%vangelical  Church,  in  which  he  ser\-etl  the  l<x:al 
parish  as  Trustee  for  many  years. 

In  1837,  at  Chicago,  Mr.  Fischer  married  .Miss 
Anna  Maria  Fran/en,  who  was  Ixirn  in  Schale, 
Pru:>sia,  and  came  to  America   with   her   pureulji 


256 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


and  brother  and  sister  in  1834.  They  landed  in 
Baltimore  in  the  spring  of  that  year.  After 
working  in  that  city,  partly  in  order  to  pay  a 
debt  incurred  by  way  of  obtaining  pa.ssage  money, 
they  started  for  Wheeling,  W.  Va.,  on  foot,  and 
after  arriving  and  earning  more  money,  took  pas- 
sage on  a  river-boat  to  Cincinnati.  From  there 
they  made  their  way  to  Chicago.  The  father, 
Herman  Bernhard  Henry  Franzen,  became  a  res- 
ident of  Addison,  where  he  died  January  5,  1844. 


1=1. 


^-^ 


-S2 


0ANIEL  SHEAHAN,  for  a  quarter  of  a  cen- 
tury station  agent  of  the  Chicago  &  North- 
western Railwa>-  at  Lombard,  has  been  a 
resident  of  Wheaton  since  1892,  when  he  built 
his  handsome  home  on  Washington  Avenue.  He 
was  boni  in  Shanagolden,  County  Limerick,  Ire- 
land, May  4.  1830.  His  parents.  James  and  Mar>- 
Sheahan,  were  natives  of  the  same  place,  as  were 
both  of  his  grandfathers,  Morris  and  Jeremiah 
Sheahan.  Though  both  bore  the  same  surname, 
thev  were  not  near  relatives.  In  1842,  James 
Sheahan  set  out  for  America  with  his  family  and 
settled  at  Montreal.  In  1855  he  followed  his  chil- 
dren to  DuPage  County  111.,  where  he  died  in 
April,  1868,  at  the  age  of  ninety  years.  His  wife 
died  here  December  3,  1863,  aged  seventy  years. 
Of  their  twelve  children,  all  save  one  came  to 
America.  Following  is  their  record:  Jeremiah 
died  in  Canada;  Man,-  died  in  Ireland:  Morris 
died  in  1887,  at  Lombard,  111.,  where  John,  the 
fourth,  resides  now;  Mary,  wife  of  William  Moody, 
died  in  Lyons  Township,  Cook  County,  111.; 
Honorah  lives  near  Lake  Champlain,  N.  V.; 
James  died  at  Winnebago,  111.,  in  March,  1893; 
Daniel  is  the  eighth:  Hannah  died  at  Montrealin 
1847;  Catharine  is  also  a  resident  of  New  York: 
Patrick  resides  at  Marengo,  111. ,  and  Philip  at 
Winnebago,  same  State. 

Daniel  Sheahan  attended  the  parish  school  at 
Shanagolden  until  he  was  twelve  years  old,  when 
the  family  came  to  America.  As  soon  as  he  ar- 
rived in  Canada,  he  began  to  sustain  himself  by 
such  labor  as  came  to  his  hand,  in  the  mean  time 


studying  as  he  found  opportunity.  Being  gifted 
with  intelligence,  and  po-ssessed  of  a  desire  to  bet- 
ter his  condition,  he  made  considerable  progress 
in  knowledge,  especially  in  the  ways  of  the  world, 
and  became  a  useful  and  prosperous  citizen.  He 
was  earh-  employed  as  a  teamster  iii  company 
with  his  elder  brothers,  and  worked  on  canal  con- 
struction in  that  capacity.  The  family  soon  came 
to  own  horses,  and  he  made  frequent  teaming 
trips  to  the  lumber  camps  above  Ottawa,  Canada 
(then  a  small  village  called  Bytown ) ,  and  to  the 
eastern  townships. 

In  the  spring  of  1848,  in  company  with  his 
elder  brother.  Mr.  Sheahan  took  the  first  boat 
that  left  Buffalo  for  Chicago,  and  immediately 
pnjceeded  to  York  Town.ship.  DuPage  County, 
where  they  bought  a  farm  of  one  hundred  and 
thirt\-six  acres  on  sections  12  and  18.  This  they 
tilled  in  partnership  for  many  years,  and  on  sell- 
ing out  his  interest,  Daniel  Sheahan  became  the 
owner  of  a  fine  farm  of  two  hundred  acres  in  Mil- 
ton Township,  near  Wheaton.  He  is  also  the 
owner  of  his  former  residence  at  Lombard,  with 
twenty  acres  of  land  in  the  village,  improved  with 
orchards  and  shrubbery.  Immediately  after  com- 
ing to  Illinois,  he  took  employment  in  work  on 
what  is  now  the  Chicago  &  Northwestern  Railway, 
then  the  Chicago  &  Galena  Union,  fir.st  as  fire- 
man, and  afterward  as  conductor  of  a  construc- 
tion train.  For  twenty-five  years  previous  to  his 
relirement  in  1878,  he  was  agent  at  Lombard,  as 
before  stated.  He  ser\-ed  as  School  Director  of 
Lombard,  as  Ju.stice  of  the  Peace,  and  as  a  mem- 
ber and  President  of  the  Yillage  Council.  He  has 
always  supported  the  principles  of  the  Democratic 
party,  and  is  a  faithful  member  of  the  Roman 
Catholic  Church. 

June  7,  1852,  Mr.  Sheahan  was  married  to 
Miss  Julia,  daughter  of  Michael  Egan.  .She  was 
*boni  February  2,  1830,  on  a  farm  near  Tipperary, 
Ireland,  and  came  with  her  parents  to  America 
when  .six  weeks  old.  Her  mother,  Bridget  Egan, 
>ut'  Kennedy,  died  in  Troy,  N.  Y..  four  years 
after  arriving  in  America  Only  three  of  the 
children  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Sheahan  are  now  liv- 
ing. The  record  is  as  follows:  James  died  in 
1880,    aged  twenty-five  years:  Michael  Francis, 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL    RECORD. 


'^7 


died  the  same  year,  being  in  his  twenty-second 
year:  John  is  a  resident  of  Waukegan,  III.: 
Daniel  died  in  his  eighteenth  year  in  is.s;:  Mar> , 
wife  of  Ivlward  Clarrit> .  and  William  are  resi- 
dents of  Wheaton,  the  latter  being  eniploye<l  as 
railroad  brakenian;  and  Philip  died  l)efore  com- 
pleting his  seventh  year. 

Mr.  Sheahan  has  lieen  an  industrious  and  pru- 
dent man.  faithful  to  his  employers  and  himself, 
and  is  now  enjoying  the  fruits  of  his  lalxirs  in  a 
delightful  home  at  Wheaton.  Hisexaniple  should 
encourage  the  ambitious  vonth  to  cultivate  the 
qualities  which  will  make  him  a  useful  and  re- 
spected citizen,  and  insure  peace  to  his  old  age. 


[~  l).\ir.\l)  WliST  HIXBV.  of  Wheaton.  was 
1^  Ixini  in  Middlelown.  Susquehanna  County. 
L„  Pa..  Januan.'  14,  1X35,  and  is  a  grantlson  of 
Darius  and  Rachael  (Smith)  Bixby.  Darius 
Bixby  was  a  native  of  New  England,  and  ser\-ed 
in  the  Revolutionar>-  War.  His  flintUxk  niuskit 
is  still  preser\-ed.  being  the  pro])erty  of  his  grand- 
son, Asa  I).  Bixby.  of  Lanark,  III.  Both  he  and 
his  wife  were  of  English  extraction. 

Asa,  son  of  Darius  Bixby,  born  in  \'erniont, 
went  to  Pennsylvania  when  a  young  man,  and 
there  married  Alniena  West,  a  native  of  Connect- 
icut, and  daughter  of  Elias  West,  of  an  old  New 
England  family.  He  engaged  in  fanning,  and 
died  in  i.'<4.S,  at  the  age  of  forty-five  years,  from 
the  effects  of  a  blow  on  the  head  by  a  falling  pike- 
pole  at  a  raising.  He  had  three  sons  and  a  like 
number  of  daughters,  four  of  whonj  grew  to  ma- 
turity. Edmund  W.,  the  fourth  child,  is  the 
only  one  now  living.  Two  sons  and  a  daughter 
are  burie<l  in  Pennsylvania.  Mrs.  Bixby  and 
one  daughter  were  buried  at  Mukwonago,  Wis. 
The  other.  I'rsula.  dietl  at  Ree<l.sburg,  Wis.,  leav- 
ing a  husband,  J.  S.  Worthman,  now  City  Clerk 
of  BaralKKi,  and  two  .sons.  Theodore,  the  eldest 
of  these,  is  American  Express  agent  at  West  Su- 
perior, Wis.,  and  Arthur  is  ticket  agent  of  the 
Chicago  &  Northwestern  Railway  at  BaraUxj. 

E.  W.  Bixbv  wab  ten  vears  old  at  the  time  of 


his  father's  death,  and  s«H)n  came  tu  1m.  iln- 
main  a.ssistant  of  his  mother  in  operating  the 
home  farm.  Ik-  had  little  chance  to  secure  an 
eilucjition,  but  has  gaineil  some  knowleiige  of  af- 
fairs by  contact  with  the  world,  and  by  reading. 
He  learned  the  carjx-nter's  trade  with  an  uncle, 
and  followed  that  initil  his  injuries  in  the  military 
ser\'ice  disable<l  him.  In  iK;4.  with  his  mother 
and  two  sisters,  lie  came  West  and  seltle<l  at 
Mukwonago,  Wis.  In  the  summer  of  1S62.  he 
enlisted  for  three  years  as  a  member  of  Company 
F.  Twenty-eighth  Wisconsin  Infantry,  and  served 
a  year  in  the  Western  Army.  His  first  serious 
battle  was  that  at  Ft.  Peinl)ert<in,  near  Vicksbnrg, 
and  in  that  caiu]>aign,  while  working  on  fortifica- 
tions, he  rec-eived  an  injury  which  cau.seil  his  dis- 
charge. For  a  year  and  a-half  he  was  wholly 
(lisable<l.  and  spent  his  time  among  relatives  alx)ut 
Lanark,  III. 

In  1865,  he  came  to  Wheaton.  and  was  em- 
ployed for  three  years  in  the  cab  factor>'  of  H.  C. 
Childs,  and  subsetpiently  engaged  in  ])ainting  and 
such  light  employment  as  he  was  able  to  perform. 
.Since  February,  1.S79,  he  has  kept  a  restaurant 
on  Railroad  Street.  For  some  years,  he  rented  a 
building,  and  then  purcha.sed  it.  Less  than  a 
year  after  he  became  the  owner,  the  building  was 
destroyed  by  a  fire  that  originated  in  an  adjoining 
building.  In  the  sunnner  of  1H85,  he  built  the 
substantial  brick  .stnicture  which  he  now  occupies 
as  a  residence  and  place  of  business.  Beside  do- 
ing a  good  business  in  feeding  the  hungry,  he 
has  a  trade  in  canned  and  baker>-  gfnxls.  By  at- 
tending to  his  business  and  letting  alone  that  of 
others.  Mr.  Bixby  has  eanie<l  the  ctnifidence 
an<l  respect  of  the  i*onnnunity.  He  is  a  member 
of  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Repul)lic,  and  of  the 
Baptist  Church.  In  jjolitical  divisions,  he  has 
always  Ix^en  foun<l  on  the  Re]>ul)lican  side,  but 
h.i>  never  sought  any  oflice  i\>T  himself  His  .sole 
]M>litical  service  has  l>een  jH-rfornieil  in  nominating 
i-on  vent  ions. 

Mr.  Hixby  has  tx.-en  Iwitv  married.      His  first 
wedding  f»ccurred  in    1864,  when  he  bei-ame  the 
huslmnd  of  Mary    .\ustin.    a   native  of  Peiinss  I 
vania,    and    daughter   of    Dudle>'    ami    Hannah 
I  \'a$linc;  Austin,   albu  natives  of  Pennsylvania. 


258 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICiiX  RECORD. 


She  died  within  four  years,  leaving  a  daughter. 
May,  now  the  wife  of  Samuel  D.  Weldon,  a  builder 
ofWheaton.  January  14,  1873,  Mr.  Bixbj- was 
married  to  Carrie  Thomas,  a  native  of  Madoc, 
Hastings  County.  Ontario.  Canada.  There  is  no 
offspring  of  this  union. 


]^H-^S 


IILLIAM  CARTER,  who  has  been  for 
thirty  years  a  member  of  Dr.  E.  C.  Guild's 
family,  is  a  ver\-  early  resident  of  DuPage 
County.  He  was  born  in  Bishop  Stortford.  near 
London,  England,  in  1S20,  and  came  to  America 
in  1847.  After  living  a  year  in  Bloomingdale 
Township,  he  removed  to  Wayne,  and  from  there 
went  with  the  Doctor's  family  to  Bartlett.  and 
thenee  to  Wheaton.  He  is  very  fond  of  children, 
and  has  been  an  invaluable  assistant  in  rearing 
the  Doctor's  family.  His  chief  occupation  before 
taking  up  his  residence  in  this  family  was  that  of 
a  farm  laborer,  and,  being  a  bacheler,  ver>'  little 
has  sufficed  for  his  needs.  In  1862,  Mr.  Carter 
joined  Company  F  of  the  One  Hundred  and  Fifth 
Illinois  Infantni-,  and  sen-ed  a  year  in  the  Union 
army.  He  has  become  thoroughly  Americanized, 
and  is  proud  of  his  adopted  countrv-.  Since  be- 
coming a  citizen  he  has  .sustained  the  Republican 
party,  except  in  the  last  two  Presidential  cam- 
paigns, and  is  now  allied  with  the  Prohibitionists. 
He  has  been  for  over  thirty  years  a  member  of 
the  Congregational  Church. 


]^^ 


[S_ 


r^  ARIUS  W.  CRESCY,  the  junior  member  of 
IP  I  the  firm  of  Thatcher  &  Crescy,  dealers  in 
IC/  general  merchandise,  of  Downer's  Grove, 
was  born  on  the  nth  of  March.  1833.  inStratton, 
Xt.,  and  was  the  second  child  in  a  family  of  four 
children  bom  unto  Aaron  W.  and  Betsy  (Hill) 
Cre.scy.  Philomel  P..  the  eldest,  is  the  wife  of 
Rice  Thompson,  of  Goshen,  Ind. :  Lucretia,  the 
next  youngest,  became  the  wife  of  R.  Peck,  of 
Campton,   111.,    but   is   now    deceased;    and   the 


youngest  died  in  infancy.  The  father  of  this 
family  was  a  native  of  New  Hampshire,  and  re- 
mained upon  the  home  farm  in  the  old  Granite 
State  until  he  had  attained  his  majority,  when  he 
remo\ed  to  \"ennont,  and  there  married.  His 
first  wife  lived  only  a  few  months,  and  he  after- 
ward wedded  Miss  Hill.  Several  years  later,  in 
1839,  accompanied  by  his  family,  he  went  to  Wy- 
oming County,  N.  Y..  where  he  made  his  home - 
until  1859.  That  year  witnessed  his  arrival  in 
DuPage  County,  where  he  continued  to  reside 
until  his  death,  at  the  age  of  seventy-six  years. 
His  wife  passed  away  in  1S41,  when  Darius  was 
only  eight  years  of  age.  She  was  bom  in  Ver- 
mont, in  the  same  house  where  her  son's  birth 
occurred. 

After  the  death  of  his  mother,  cur  subject  went 
to  live  with  his  grandparents,  with  whom  he  re- 
mained until  tn-elve  years  of  age.  He  then  be- 
gan working  on  a  farm  by  the  month  during  the 
summer  season,  while  in  the  winter  he  attended 
the  district  schools  of  the  neighborhood  until 
twenty-one  years  of  age.  The  new  and  rapidly 
growing  West  attracted  him,  and  he  resolved  to 
seek  his  fortune  on  its  broad  prairies:  so  coming  to 
Illinois,  he  located  in  Downer's  Grove  Township, 
where  he  continued  to  work  by  the  month  for  two 
years.  He  then  began  farming  in  his  own  inter- 
est on  rented  land,  and  subsequently  he  entered 
the  store  of  Cole  &  Thatcher,  afterward  Eldred 
Thatcher,  as  an  employe.  For  six  years  he  con- 
tinued to  work  as  a  salesman,  when,  in  1878,  he 
purchased  a  half-interest  in  the  business  with 
which  he  has  now  been  connected  for  twent\'-one 
years. 

On  the  26th  of  November,  1856,  was  celebrated 
the  marriage  of  Mr.  Crescy  and  Miss  Mar\'  K. 
Fox,  one  of  the  early  settlers  of  this  county. 
They  have  no  children  of  their  own.  but  have  an 
adopted  daughter.  Ruby  Ellen,  now  thirteen 
years  of  age.  They  have  a  pleasant  home  in 
Downer's  Grove,  where  they  are  widely  and  fav- 
orably known.  In  politics.  Mr.  Crescy  is  a 
Democrat.  He  has  served  as  Town  Clerk  for 
one  term,  was  School  Director,  and  is  now  one  of 
the  TrtLstees  of  the  Village  Board.  In  1890  he 
was    nominated   on    the    Democratic    ticket    for 


(jf^-nTP-y-y 


ex^ 


C  .     c>C<?--c^^^x^ 


i- 


^^^ 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


J63 


County  Treasurer,  and  preatly  reduced  the  stronjj 
Republican  majority,  whidi  shows  his  jxipularily 
anion);  all  classes. 

In  1.S92,  without  his  kn(>wle<lj;e.  and  unsolic- 
iteil,  he  was  hoiioretl  with  the  noniination  for 
Elector  for  the  Ki^hth  District  of  this  State,  and 
was  one  of  the  twenty-four  who  cast  the  electoral 
voti-  ot  Illinois  for  Grover  Cleveland  for  President. 

Mr.  Crescy  has  lived  a  quiet  and  unassunung 
life,  but  the  uprightness  that  has  characterized 
his  career  has  won  for  him  high  esteem.  He  has 
given  nearly  his  entire  time  and  attention  to  his 
business.  At  a  very  early  age  he  was  thrown 
upon  his  own  resources.  He  had  few  advantages, 
educational  or  otherwise,  and  therefore  his  suc- 
cess has  lK"en  achievetl  by  earnest  and  untiring 
effort.  gcHKl  management,  and  unconquerable  en- 
terprise. He  is  now  doing  a  good  business  as  a 
niemlK-r  of  one  of  the  leading  mercantile  firms  of 
Downer's  Grove. 

IIO.MAS  i;i)\\  AKI)  l.KWIS.  a  self-made, 
viiteriirising  and  progressive  citizen  of  Wliea- 
ton.  is  one  of  the  pioneers  of  Illinois,  hav- 
ing come  to  the  State  with  his  parents  in  18.^9. 
He  is  a  native  of  Swansea.  Wales,  Ixjni  on  the  2d 
ofjuly,  1826.  His  ancestors  were  prominent  in  the 
militant-  ser\ice  of  Great  Kritain,  and  were  among 
the  most  ancient  in  that  aiuntry .  His  grandfather, 
Joshua  LewLs.  was  a  fanner,  and  lived  to  be  over 
ninety  yc-ars  old,  being  succee<led  on  retiring  by 
his  son  Jo.seph,  father  of  Thomas  E.  Lewis,  all 
being  Ixini  on  the  .same  farm.  Joseph  I.,ewis 
married  Margaret,  only  daughter  of  Thomas 
Rol>erts.  a  neighlK»ring  farmer.  Ik-side  this 
cbughter.  Mr.  R(»l)erts  had  two  sons,  John  and 
Thomas.  The  former  was  a  very  stalwart  speci- 
men of  manhood,  lieing  six  feet  and  si.\  inches  in 
height.  He  le<l  the  choir  in  the  Independent 
Church  near  his  home. 

As  alx»ve  stated,  in  1839  Jo.seph  Lewis  came 
with  his  family  to  America.  Pnx-eetling  at  once 
to  West  Northfiehl.  C(Kik  County.  111.,  he  pre- 
empted   a  (juarter-seetiou  of  land,   on  which  he 

«3 


pas.sed  the  balance  of  his  life.  His  \mk  liu-d  in 
luT  si-\cnty -first  year,  and  he  lived  to  see  his 
eighty-eighth.  Of  their  thirteen  children,  twelve 
grew  to  maturity,  the  third  dying  in  Wales,  and 
nine  are  now  living.  Following  are  their  names: 
Joseph,  Mary.  IClizalx^th.  Thomas,  Evan,  John, 
William,  Sarah.  David.  Charles.  Eli.  Maria  and 
Margaret.  The  eldest  iiKLsteretl  Hebrew,  Greek, 
Latin,  navigation  and  surveying  Vwfore  he  was 
twenty  years  old,  and  lK-c:ime  a  MetlnKlist  Epis- 
copal clcrg>nian.  lU-  died  at  the  early  age  of 
twenty-seven  years,  at  Norwtxxl  Park,  111.,  where 
he  was  buried,  though  his  home  w.is  at  Heloit, 
Wis.,  where  he  built  the  first  Methodist  Church 
of  that  city.  David  and  Man-  are  deceased,  and 
William  is  a  resident  of  I'ortlaiul.  Ore.  Charles 
is  practicing  medicine  in  Chicago. 

Thomas  E.  Lewis  attended  .school  in  his  native 
place  till  he  was  nine  years  old.  when  he  went  to 
work.  His  fir.st  week's  wages  were  eigiiteeii 
cents,  which  he  kept  as  a  souvenir  for  many 
years.  With  the  exception  of  about  a  quarter's 
attendance  at  night  .sc1i(k>1  in  Chicago,  the  balance 
of  his  education  has  been  supplied  by  contact 
with  the  world,  and  he  has  proved  a  most  apt 
pupil.  Nature  bles.sed  him  with  a  sound  mind 
and  constitution,  and  lie  is  con.sidered  one  of  the 
.solid  men  whose  presence  in  the  community  is  a 
blessing,  for  his  judgment  is  correct  and  he  has 
the  courage  to  carr>-  out  his  convictions.  With 
no  early  advantages,  with  luj  aid  save  his  own  in- 
diistrv  and  adherence  to  an  ideal,  he  has  amassed 
a  modest  competence,  and  has  eanieti  the  respect 
and  go(xl-will  of  his  fellows. 

The  oKl  proverb  says,  "  Where  there  is  a  will, 
there  is  a  way,"  and  one  morning  in  the  spring 
of  1  .S4  ^  young  Lewis  set  out  on  f(x>t  for  Chicago 
to  find  the  way,  his  cai)ital  on  starting  consisting 
of  fifty  cent.s.  His  feet  becoming  sore  from  the 
action  of  a  pair  of  new  and  stiff  Ixiots,  he  made  a 
bargain  with  a  teamster  Ixjiind  for  the  city  to 
carr>-  him  thither  for  eighteen  cents.  Arriving 
on  South  Water  Street,  he  came  ojjposite  the 
lumlKT-yard  of  Sylvester  Lyiid.  the  first  pers<jn 
to  whom  he  had  .s|x>ken  after  alighting,  and  he  at 
once  eng.aged  to  work  in  the  lunilK-r-\  an!  at  such 
remuneration  as  Mr.  L\nd  found  him  worth  after 


264 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


trial.  This  was  soon  fixed  at  $12  per  month,  and 
in  addition  his  kind  employer  provided  him  with 
a  new  suit  of  clothing,  complete,  in  order  that  he 
might  attend  Sabbath-school.  He  soon  made 
him,self  familiar  with  the  lumber  business,  and 
was  promoted  to  the  position  of  inspector,  with  a 
corresponding  salary.  He  remained  in  the  city 
for  seven  years,  being  for  a  short  time  in  the  em- 
ploy of  the  late  Deacon  Philo  Carpenter,  a  well- 
known  pioneer  of  Chicago. 

In  the  spring  of  1850,  Mr.  Lewis  took  a  help- 
mate, in  the  person  of  Miss  Margaret,  daughter 
of  Edward  and  Elizabeth  Jones,  all  of  Bala, 
Wales,  where  the  family  has  dwelt  for  many  gen- 
erations on  the  same  farm  called  "  Nanthir,"  and 
which  is  still  occupied  by  some  of  its  members. 
Mrs.  Thomas  J.  Evans,  a  pioneer  of  Racine,  Wis., 
is  a  sister  of  Mrs.  Lewis.  Mr.  Lewis  immediately 
took  his  bride  to  a  farm  of  his  own  at  Arlington 
Heights  (then  called  Dunton),  Cook  County, 
where  he  broke  up  and  improved  wild  land  and 
got  a  good  start  in  the  world.  He  remained 
there  eighteen  years,  serving  continuously  as 
School  Director,  and  then  removed  to  Blue  Is- 
land, in  the  same  county,  and  continued  his  agri- 
cultural pursuits,  being  there  also  a  school  officer 
for  six  years.  Beside  farming,  Mr.  Lewis  has 
dealt  extensively  in  lands,  and  is  a  laige  owner 
of  Chicago  and  Hyde  Park  real  estate,  as  well  as 
numerous  farms.  He  dwelt  two  years  in  Engle- 
wood,  and  removed  thence  on  the  ist  of  May, 
1891,  to  Wheaton,  whtre  he  built  a  handsome 
home  on  au  eminence  near  College  Avenue  Station. 
He  still  occupies  himself  with  the  care  of  hig  large 
farms  near  Wheaton,  though  he  finds  time  to  give 
attention  to  all  matters  of  public  concern,  especi- 
ally education,  on  which  his  judgment  is  eminently 
sound  and  practical.  He  has  striven  to  equip  his 
children  for  the  battle  of  life,  and  six  of  his 
daughters  are  graduates  of  the  Cook  County  Nor- 
mal School,  and  successful  teachers. 

Like  all  true  Welshmen,  Mr.  Lewis  is  proud 
of  his  native  land,  its  people  and  their  achieve- 
ments, though  this  does  not  detract  in  the  least 
from  his  loyal  American  spirit.  He  is  a  Director 
and  Treasurer  of  the  Cambro  Printing  Company, 
of  Chicago,  which  publishes  a  Welsh  and  English 


newspaper  called  Columbia,  the  largest  of  its  kind 
in  the  world.  For  a  short  time  Mr.  Lewis  was 
President  and  General  Manager  of  this  company, 
but  as  soon  as  it  was  firmly  established  he  re- 
signed those  positions,  because  he  could  not  de- 
vote his  time  to  them.  When  it  was  found  neces- 
sary to  provide  a  bond  for  the  payment  of  prizes 
offered  for  competition  in  the  International  Ei- 
steddfod, in  Festival  Hall,  at  the  World's  Colum- 
bian Exposition,  Mr.  Lewis,  with  true  patriotic 
spirit,  came  forward  and  gave  his  personal  secur- 
ity for  $12,500,  which  was  ultimately  paid  out  of 
t^e  receipts  of  the  festival,  thus  justifying  his 
faith  in  his  compatriots  and  the  Fair. 

In  religious  matters,  Mr.  Lewis  is  liberal  and 
progressive.  He  attends  the  Congregational 
Church  with  his  entire  family.  In  political  con- 
cerns, he  adheres  to  the  Republican  party,  be- 
cause he  believes  it  rests  on  true  underlying  prin- 
ciples, but  has  never  found  the  time  nor  had  the 
inclination  to  seek  preferment.  He  took  a  deep 
interest  in  the  public  school  management,  because 
he  had  a  large  family  to  educate,  and  gave  much 
time  to  this  interest,  always  insisting  on  the  con- 
duct of  the  schools  with  a  sole  view  to  the  public 
welfare,  sometimes  making  enemies  by  his  course, 
but  always  triumphing  in  the  end.  He  is  now 
serving  as  Alderman  from  the  Second  Ward  of 
Wheaton.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Welsh  Society, 
Cvmiodorioii,  and  the  League  of  American 
Wheelmen,  he  being  an  expert  bicycle-rider. 

On  the  6th  of  May,  1889,  death  entered  the 
home  of  Mr.  Lewis  and  took  the  kind,  faithful 
wife  and  mother,  leaving,  beside  the  bereaved 
husband,  seven  of  her  nine  children  to  mourn  her 
absence.  The  eldest  of  these,  Margaret].,  wife 
of  George  H.  Brewster,  of  Wheaton,  died  July  9, 
1891.  Joseph  W.  resides  at  Blue  Lsland,  where 
he  is  engaged  in  manufacturing;  and  Sarah  M., 
who  for  some  time  held  the  position  of  Critic 
'  Teacher  at  the  Cook  County  Normal  School,  is 
now  her  father's  housekeeper.  Alice  U.,  wife  of 
James  H.  Kerr,  resides  at  Amsley,  Neb.,  and  is 
prominent  in  temperance  and  Sunday-school  work, 
making  frequent  public  addresses  in  their  behalf. 
Mary  A.,  Mrs.  William  H.  Hoar,  died  a  few 
weeks  before  her  mother.      Cora  E.   graduated  at 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL    RECORD. 


-^^5 


the  Blue  Island  High  School,  at  the  Cook  County 
Nonnal  i  being  valedictorian  of  the  t\vo-yeap>  grad- 
uating class  >,  and  at  Oberlin  College.  Ohio;  she 
is  now  Principal  of  the  Belle  Plaine  Sclux)l  in  Chi- 
cago, and  Chairman  of  the  Kxecntive  Committee 
of  the  Illinois  State  Teachers'  Association.  She 
makes  frequent  addresses  on  etlncational  topics, 
and  was  chosen  to  oniduct  the  model  scluxd  which 
ser\"ed  as  a  World's  Fair  exhibit  near  Jackson 
Park,  and  earrieil  it  through  successfully.  Ada  L., 
widow  of  J.  \V.  Hainiernian.  with  her  son  Tommy, 
resides  with  Mr.  Lewis.  A  sketch  of  Hdward  J. 
will  be  found  on  another  page  of  this  work. 
Grace  May  (often  callevl  Minnie)  is  pursuing  a 
medical  course  at  the  Woman's  College  in  Chi- 
cago. 

Mr.  Ix-wis  is  a  frank,  whole-souled  gentleman, 
with  refined  instincts  and  manly  self-respect, 
which  forbid  his  doing  a  mean  or  low  act.  and  his 
conversation  is  always  cheerful  and  entertaining. 
Out  of  a  ripe  experience,  he  has  gathered  a  large 
stock  of  general  and  useful  knowledge.  Now,  in 
his  sixty-eighth  year,  he  is  in  the  full  vigor  of  a 
tenii)erate  and  well-spent  life.  He  has  a  closely  knit 
frame,  weighing  one  hundred  and  ninety  jjounds, 
and  has  promise  of  an  extended  continuance  of  an 
exi.stence  which  has  bles.sed  himself,  his  family, 
and  the  communitv  at  large.  When  his  time 
comes  to  lay  down  the  active  duties  of  life,  which 
have  been  a  yxrrennial  source  of  plea,sure.  he  can 
safely  consign  the  giKxi  name  that  he  has  won  to 
the  care  of  a  worthy  posterity. 


}i-^ 


^3 


•VSRAEL  OriLI).  one  of  the  pioneers  of  I)u- 
I  Page  County,  wxs  a  descendant  of  one  of  the 
X  early  Puritan  settlers  of  Ma.ssachusetts,  and  a 
worthy  type  of  the  faithful,  persistent  character  of 
our  New  England  forefathers.  In  1636.  John 
and  Calvin  Guild,  brothers,  came  from  England, 
and  settled  at  Dedham.  in  Ma.ssachusetts.  The 
former,  supp<jsed  to  have  Ix'en  l>oni  in  1616,  was 
made  a  member  of  the  church  July  17.  1^40,  and 
the  same  year  bought  land  and  built  a  house, 
which  was  occupied  by  his  descendants  for  over 


Iwii  hundred  years.  He  was  made  a  freeman 
May  to,  164.^,  and  actjnired  land  in  Wreiitham, 
Medfield  and  Natick.  a.s  well  as  Dedham.  He 
died  OclolxT  4,  1682.  On  June  24.  1643.  ht 
marrietl  ElizaK-th  CrcKtke,  of  Roxbur\',  who  die<l 
August  31.  16.S9.  They  had  six  sons  and  one 
daughter.  Of  these,  Samuel,  l)orn  Novemlnrr  7. 
1647,  married,  NovemlK*r  29,  167^1.  Mary,  daugh- 
ter of  Sanniel  and  Ann  (Herring)  Wrxxicock,  of 
Dedham.  Their  ten  children  consisted  of  seven 
sons  and  three  daughters.  Israel,  the  seventh, 
was  Ixirn  in  I)e<lham,  June  11,  1690.  He  moved 
to  Lebanon,  Conn.,  where  his  will  was  probated 
December  18,  1766,  it  Ix-aring  date  the  nth  of 
March  previous.  His  wife's  name  was  Sarah,  her 
maiden  name  unknown.  They  had  two  sons  and 
four  daughters.  The  fourth.  Jacob,  bom  August 
I,  1722,  married  Mrs.  Hannah  Larrabee,  of  Cov- 
entr>-.  Conn..  May  26,  1757,  and  moved  from 
Lebanon  to  the  neighborhootl  known  as  West 
Fanns,  in  Hatfield,  Mass.,  on  the  Connecticut 
River.     They  had  five  sons  and  two  daughters. 

Jes.se,  fourth  child  of  Jacob  and  Hannah  Guild, 
was  born  in  Hatfield,  Mass..  April  11.  1765,  and 
lived  most  of  his  life  at  Halifax,  in  X'emiont.  He 
was  a  blacksmith  by  iKCupation,  and  lived  to  be 
over  eighty  years  old.  He  was  active  in  the  Con- 
gregational Church,  in  which  he  was  a  Deacon 
many  years.  He  served  three  years  in  the  Revo- 
lutionary War.  holding  the  rank  of  Orderly -Ser- 
geant. His  wife's  maiden  name  was  Zilpah 
Smith. 

Israel,  son  of  Jesse  and  Zilpah  Guild,  and 
father  of  W.  K.  and  Dr.  E.  C.  Guild,  was  born 
in  Halifax,  V't. .  May  3,  1791,  and  married  Rachael 
Kellogg,  who  was  l)oni  in  Br<K)kfield,  \'t.,  June 
29,  1791.  His  occupation  was  that  of  car|>enter 
and  joiner,  which  he  followed  all  his  life.  Soon 
after  his  marriage  he  went  to  MontiH*lier,  Vt., 
later  to  Conway.  Mass.,  and  in  1S37  to  Whately. 
in  the  latter  State.  In  1K39  he  Ix-came  a  resident 
of  DuPage  County,  settling  on  a  farm  in  Wayne 
TtJwnship.  where  he  remained  until  his  death, 
August  22.  1865,  at  the  age  of  sevent\  three 
years.  He  was  a  member  of  the  Congregational 
Church,  and  in  early  life  esj>onse<l  the  principles 
of  the  Whig  party,  later  bcconnng  an  Alwlitionist, 


266 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


and  in  turn  a  Republican.  His  wife,  Rachael, 
died  December  ii,  1872,00  the  homestead  in 
Wayne.  She  was  a  daughter  of  Phineas  Kellogg, 
a  prominent  farmer  of  Brookfield,  Vt.,  who 
served  seven  years  in  the  Revolutionary  Army, 
and  lived  to  be  over  eighty  years  old.  They  became 
the  parents  of  .seven  children,  the  first  two  of 
whom  came  to  Illinois  in  1837,  the  rest  following 
with  the  parents.  Eunice,  the  eldest,  who  became 
the  wife  of  Henry  Endlong  Hemenway,  lived  in 
Wayne  and  Sycamore,  and  died  at  Wheaton.  in 
December,  1890.  Elijah  Lyman  died  in  Wayne  in 
1852.  William  K.  lived  in  Wayne,  and  later  in 
Wheaton,  where  he  died  October  27,  1886,  and 
where  his  widow  and  five  children  now  reside. 
Albert  lived  in  Wayne,  and  retired  to  Aurora, 
where  he  died  in  June,  1886.  Harriet  Newell 
resides  in  Wheaton  with  her  husband,  Charles 
Smith.     The  sixth  died  at  the  age  of  two  years. 


-=3. 


]^+^ 


(^ 


IILLIAM  F.  FRANZEN,  who  is  succe.s.s- 
fully  engaged  in  general  farming  on  section 
14,  Addison  Township,  has  spent  his  en- 
tire life  in  DuPage  County.  He  was  born  in  this 
township,  on  the  i8th  of  March,  1861,  and  is  a 
son  of  John  H.  and  Anna  C.  (Deters)  Franzen,  who 
were  both  natives  of  Westphalia,  Germany.  For 
more  extended  mention  of  John  H.  Franzen,  see 
sketch  of  B.  L-  Franzen  on  another  page  of  this 
work. 

William  F.  Franzen  is  the  ninth  child  and 
sixth  son  in  a  family  of  ten  children,  numbering 
seven  sons  and  three  daughters.  Upon  the  farm 
which  is  still  his  home  the  days  of  his  boyhood 
and  youth  were  passed  midst  play  and  work.  He 
began  his  education  in  the  district  schools  of  the 
neighborhood,  and  later  attended  Wheaton  Col- 
lege, of  Wheaton,  111.,  and  pursued  a  business 
course  of  study  in  Bryant  &  Stratton's  Commer- 
cial College,  of  Chicago.  He  has  thus  been  well 
fitted  by  education  and  training  for  the  practical 
duties  of  life. 

On  the  nth  of  November,  1881,  in  his  present 
home,  Mr.  F^ranzen  was  united  in  marriage  with 


Miss  Lillie  Kolze,  a  native  of  Ley  den  Township, 
Cook  County,  where  her  maidenhood  days  were 
passed.  Four  children  have  been  born  of  this 
union,  three  sons  and  a  daughter,  namely:  Henry, 
Rosine,  Edwin  and  William  F.  The  parents  are 
widely  and  favorably  known  in  the  community 
and  hold  an  enviable  position  in  social  circles. 

Mr.  Franzen  is  now  the  owner  of  one  hundred 
and  sixty  acres  of  good  land  and  is  engaged  in 
general  farming  and  the  dairy  business.  The 
latter  yields  to  him  a  good  income,  and  in  the 
former  line  he  is  alike  successful.  His  entire  life 
has  been  devoted  to  farm  work,  and  the  .systematic 
way  in  which  he  manages  his  interests  has  won 
him  prosperity. 

Since  attaining  to  man's  estate,  Mr.  Franzen 
has  voted  with  the  Republican  party  and  is  a 
warm  advocate  of  its  principles.  He  has  been 
honored  with  a  nund^er  of  local  offices,  and  is  now 
serving  his  third  term  as  Trustee  of  Bensenville, 
his  home  and  the  greater  part  of  his  farm  lying 
within  the  corporate  limits  of  that  village.  His 
second  re-election  to  the  office  attests  his  faithful 
performance  of  duty  and  the  confidence  reposed 
in  him  by  his  fellow-townsmen.  He  holds  mem- 
bership with  the  Evangelical  Church,  and  is 
a  highly  respected  citizen,  who  during  his  resi- 
dence here  has  won  the  regard  of  all  with  whom 
business  or  .social  relations  have  brought  him  in 
contact. 

EAPT.  JONATHAN  GILLETT  VAL- 
LETTE,  an  early  resident  and  prominent 
citizen  of  DuPage  County,  was  born  in  Stock- 
bridge,  Berkshire  County,  Mass.,  on  the  7th  of 
March,  1824.  His  great-grandfather  was  a  cap- 
tain in  the  French  na\-y ,  and  was  captured  by  a 
British  ves.sel  during  the  struggle  for  the  posses- 
.sionof  the  American  Colonies.  While  a  prisoner 
at  Newport,  R.  I.,  the  latter  married  an  Amer- 
ican woman  named  West,  who  gave  birth  to  a  son. 
This  son,  who  was  named  Jeremiah,  never  knew  a 
father' s  care,  as  his  sire  went  to  France  when  re- 
leased, and  never  returned  to  his  American  fam- 


TORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RKCORD. 


i6: 


ily.  The  son  was  reared  at  Newport,  and  l>ecanie 
a  typical  New  England  Yankee.  He  marrictl 
Plutlje  Frisby.  and  settleil  at  Stivkbriiljce.  Mass.. 
abuul  1772.  He  had  two  sons — the  eldest  and 
youngest  of  the  family — and  seven  daughters. 
The  eldest.  John,  born  in  1744.  sirve<l  as  a  sol- 
dier all  through  the  Revolution,  and  lived  to  the 
age  of  one  hundred  years.  The  daughters  all  at- 
tained to  the  age  of  eighty-seven  or  more  years, 
and  two  reacheil  ninety-eight  years. 

The  youngest  son.  Jeremiah  N'allette,  was  born 
July  4,  1764,  near  Newj^xirt.  R  I.,  and  died  in 
Milton  Township,  DuFage  County,  as  tlie  result 
of  an  attack  of  fever,  at  the  age  of  eighty -four 
vears.  He  was  a  fanner,  owning  land  in  I.ee  and 
SttKTkbridge.  and  was  prominent  in  the  affairs  of 
his  town.  Ixring  often  chosen  Selectman.  Though 
he  attended  school  but  three  months,  he  was  a  well 
informed  man,  being  a  constant  reader.  He  began 
the  study  of  geography  at  the  age  of  forty-five. 
carr>  ing  his  textlxjok  to  the  field  to  be  consultetl 
at  odd  moments.  In  iS.^S.  having  retired  from 
active  life,  he  came  to  DuPage  County  to  be  with 
his  children,  and  died  on  his  fann  west  of 
Wheaton  in  the  fall  of  1848,  His  wife,  Abiah 
Mott.  was  a  native  of  Winchester,  Conn.  Fol- 
lowing is  a  record  of  their  children:  Charles 
died  in  Ma-s-sachusetts  at  the  age  of  thirty -six 
years.  Phtebe.  Mrs.  Sandfonl  H.  Manchester, 
came  with  her  husband  to  Milton  Township.  Du- 
Page Count>',  in  1S39,  and  after  living  on  a  farm 
there  many  years,  died  in  Wheaton  at  the  age  of 
eighty-seven,  from  injuries  sustainetl  in  a  fall. 
William  liecame  a  member  of  the  R<x:k  River 
Conference  of  the  Methcxlist  F^piscopal  Church  in 
1840,  and  afler\vard.  on  account  of  failing  health, 
studied  metlicine.  He  died  in  Kansas.  Hlizalteth. 
wife  of  Daniel  Fish,  died  in  Milton  Township  in 
the  '50s.  Sarah  Ls  the  widow  of  Rev.  Samuel 
W.  Smith,  residing  in  Wheaton.  John  is  a  resi- 
dent of  Alma.  Neb.  Abiah  was  the  wife  of  l-lras- 
tus  Garx'  (see  biography),  and  HenPi'  F.  is  an  at 
tome>-  of  Chicago,  formerly  in  practice  at  Naptr- 
xnlle,  DuPage  County.  A  sketch  of  the  youngest 
follows: 

Jonathan  G.    Vallette    was  fourteen  years  old 
when  the  family  came  to  Illinois.      He  had  i)revi- 


ously  attended  the  district  school  and  academy  at 
Stockbridge.  and  continueil  his  studies  in  DuPage 
County,  being  part  of  the  time  under  the  iiisti. 
tion  of  his  elder  brother,  with  whom  he  stmii' 
sur\'eying.  At  twenty-one  he  liegan  teaching  at 
Plea.sant  Hill,  where  he  had  tK-en  a  pupil,  and  af- 
tcnvard  taught  the  mIiooI  at  what  is  now  Glen 
Kllyn.  He  was  chiefly  engagetl  in  fanning  until 
185;.  when  for  many  years  he  made  snr\eying  his 
principal  occupation.  He  scrvetl  nine  years  as 
Deputy  County  Sur\"eyor.  and  was  elected  as 
principal  in  that  office  in  iS.Sy.  ser\ing  altogether, 
before  and  after  the  civil  war,  for  twelve  years 
He  was  the  first  Assessor  of  Milton  Township 
under  the  town  organization.  an»l  was  elected  Jus- 
tice of  the  Peace  in  185S.  having  previously  ser\ed 
as  Constable.  He  has  l)een  a  Notary-  Public  al- 
most continuously  since  1S52. 

Hefore  the  outbreak  of  the  Civil  War,  Mr.  \'al 
lette  was  First  Lieutenant  in  command  of  a  com- 
pany of  artillery  militia,  numl>ering  forty  men.  at 
Wheaton.  He  assisteilin  recruiting  the  first  sixty 
men  of  Company  E.  F^ighth  Illinois  Cavaln,-,  but 
did  not  go  with  it  l)ec-ause  it  was  not  mustered  into 
the  artillery,  as  he  exix-cte<l  In  1S62.  he  joined 
Company  D,  One  Hundred  and  Fifth  Illinois  In- 
faiitn'.  going  out  as  First  Sergeant.  He  was 
promoted  the  following  January  to  Sergeant-. Ma- 
jor of  the  regiment,  and  November  2,  1863.  passed 
a  satisfactorA'  examination  an<l  was  ctmunissioned 
Captain  of  Company  1).  Fourteenth  Tniletl  States 
Volunteers,  in  which  capacity  he  ser\'ed  until 
July,  i>i')3.  when  he  resigned  on  atvount  of  the 
close  of  hostilities.  For  several  months  he  served 
as  Rec«)rder  of  the  Court  «>f  Claims  at  Chatta- 
niHiga.  Tenn..and  for  four  months  previous  to  the 
battle  of  Nasiuille  was  Judge  Adv«K-ate  of  Court 
Martial.  Capt.  Vallette  was  consideretl  a  fine 
disciplinarian,  and  was  widel>'  known  for  his 
ability  to  quickl>  put  a  stjuad  of  men  in  p(x>d 
nulitar>-  order. 

In  1S65.  Cajit.  \  allelte  ln-gan  a  comniisMon 
bu.siness  on  the  Bo;»rd  of  Trade  at  Chicago,  and 
c-ontinued  until  1872,  since  which  tinte  he  has  been 
doing  a  in<iiiey-brokerage  business  in  the  same 
cit>  .  With  his  nephew,  J.  M.  \allette.  ol  Najier 
ville,  he  made   an   abstract  of   DuPage   County. 


268 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


which  they  operated  ten  years,  selling  out  to  the 
present  owner,  T.  M.  Hull.  Throughout  his  ex- 
tensive acquaintance,  he  is  known  as  a  sound 
business  man,  and  an  affable,  genial  gentleman. 
He  is  an  active  member  of  the  Grand  Army  of  the 
Republic  and  the  Wheaton  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church.  Ever  since  its  existence,  he  has  been 
an  adherent  of  the  Repubhcan  party,  as  an  expo- 
nent of  his  ideas  of  the  best  principles  of  govern- 
ment. 

Capt.  Vallette  was  married  in  1848  to  Miss 
Frances  Crosby,  a  native  of  Herkimer  County, 
N.  Y.,  and  daughter  of  Peter  and  Abigail  (Town- 
send)  Crosby,  of  New  England  descent.  Six  chil- 
dren have  been  given  to  this  union,  four  of  whom 
are  now  living.  Emma  (Mrs.  WiUiam  H.  Stan- 
ford), and  Edward  Everett  reside  at  Wheaton. 
Charles  died  at  the  age  of  thirty-four  years.  Jon- 
athan Herbert,  an  attorney,  is  Clerk  of  the 
Courts  at  Rapid  City,  S.  Dak.  William  F.  is  an 
insurance  inspector  at  Chicago,  residing  in 
Wheaton.  Bertie  died  at  the  age  often  months, 
during  an  epidemic  of  malignant  whooping- 
cough. 


-=l^-f^l=- 


Wheaton.  Mr.  Smith  has  never  mingled  in  pol- 
tics,  but  adheres  to  the  Republican  party.  With 
the  exception  of  four  years,  he  has  lived  in  Whea- 
ton ever  since  he  came  here  as  a  child. 

June  6.  1882,  occurred  the  marriage  of  Jay  P. 
Smith  and  Miss  Jennie  S.  Kelley,  daughter  of 
Daniel  Kelley,  one  of  the  pioneers  of  Milton 
Township.  Mrs.  Smith  was  born  two  miles  north 
of  Wheaton,  in  Milton,  and  has  one  child.  Gene- 
vieve Fay  Smith,  born  May  7,  1892. 


3 AY  PLATT  SMITH,  eldest  son  of  Hiram 
Smith  (see  biography  in  this  workj ,  was  born 
at  Eagle,  Waukesha  County,  Wis,  December. 
22,  1853.  He  was  but  two  years  old  when  he 
came  with  his  parents  to  Wheaton,  and  he  re- 
ceived his  education  in  the  public  schools  and 
Wheaton  College,  attending  the  last-named  insti- 
tution two  years.  At  nineteen,  he  left  school 
and  took  up  house  painting,  which  he  followed 
five  years. 

In  January-,  1877,  our  subject  entered  the  oflBce 
of  E.  H.  &  N.  E.  Garj-,  in  Chicago,  and  re- 
mained with  the  firm  until  it  was  dissolved,  when 
he  went  with  N.  E.  Gary,  in  whose  employ  he  still 
remains.  He  does  all  the  work  of  a  lawyer  ex- 
cept to  plead,  having  never  applied  for  admission 
to  the  Bar.  He  has  made  himself  very  valua- 
ble to  his  employer,  and  is  associated  with  him 
in  the  ownership  of  valuable  business  property  in 


-^-^. 


~S] 


^+^ 


C=- 


RUFUS  CORNELIUS  GUILD,  third  son  of 
Dr.  E.  C.  Guild  (see  biography  of  latter  for 
genealogy- ) ,  is  numbered  among  the  most 
successful  young  business  men  of  Wheaton.  He 
was  bom  at  Wayne  Center,  DuPage  County,  111., 
on  the  7th  of  November,  186 1,  and  received  his 
primar\-  education  in  the  district  school  of  that 
hamlet.  He  subsequently  attended  Elgin  Acad- 
emy and  Wheaton  College,  and  engaged  in  teach- 
ing for  one  year.  For  four  years  he  was  Deputy 
Postmaster  at  Bartlett,  managing  the  office  for  his 
father,  who  was  Postma.ster.  He  managed  the 
homestead  farm  at  Wayne  for  five  years,  and  his 
energj-  and  enterprise  made  this  profitable  to  all 
concerned.  His  most  successful  enterprise  has 
been  the  conduct  of  a  hotel  in  Chicago,  which  he 
sold  out  in  the  spring  of  1893.  He  is  the  owner 
of  a  desirable  building  site  on  Main  Street, 
Wheaton,  adjoining  his  father's  residence,  where 
he  contemplates  the  erection  of  a  home. 

Mr.  Guild  was  married,  in  1886,  to  Miss  Susie 
Belle  Brown,  who  was  born  in  Madison,  N.  Y., 
and  is  a  daughter  of  James  and  Aflfabel  (Hender- 
son) Brown,  natives  of  New  York,  and  of  English 
and  Scotch  descent,  respectively.  The  father 
died  when  Mrs.  Guild  was  seven  years  old,  and 
the  mother  when  she  was  but  nine,  and  she  came 
West  with  an  elder  sister.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Guild 
are  communicants  of  the  College  Congregational 
Church  of  Wheaton.  The\-  have  a  son  and 
daughter,  Irma  Belle  anci  Warren  Rufus,  born 
July  5,  1SS7,  and  August  15,  1889,  respectively. 
Mr.  Guild  is  a  man  of  advanced  thought  and  sen- 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


-v.iy 


timeiits,  and  gives  his  political  allegiance  to  the 
Prohibition  j>arty,  taking  care  not  to  ham|xrr  hi> 
liberty  with  pietlges  to  any  secret  order  or  society . 
He  is  an  independent  American  citizen,  fulfilling 
the  duties  that  devolve  upon  him  to  the  best  of 
his  aliilitv. 


}^rh>\ 


cs_ 


EHAkl.KS  CARPKNTKR,  son  of  William 
and  Marj-  iHollisten  Carpenter,  was  lx)rn  in 
the  town  of  DeWitt,  Onondaga  County, 
X.  Y..  Septeml>er  23.  1833.  William  Carpenter 
was  bom  May  1,  1806.  He  was  the  son  of  Xe- 
hemiah  and  Anna  (Ba>kout)  Carpenter,  who 
were  married  February  13.  1782. 

Xehemiah  Carpenter,  who  was  bom  June  29. 
'757-  was  a  weaver.  At  the  outbreak  of  the  Rev- 
olutionary War  he  was  living  on  Long  Island, 
near  Xew  York  City.  When  Washington's am>y 
went  from  Boston  to  Xew  York  to  protect  the 
latter  place  from  attack  b\-  the  British,  Xehemiah 
Carpenter,  then  a  lad  of  nineteen,  enlisted,  and 
fought  under  Gen.  Israel  Putnam  for  American 
independence  at  the  battle  of  Long  Island,  August 
27.  177^-  There  is  no  known  record  of  his  later 
services  as  a  soldier.  He  died  February  24,1832, 
at  Manlius,  X.  Y.  His  wife.  Anna  Bookout,  was 
from  a  Hutch  Xew  York  family. 

Xehemiah  Carpenter's  father  was  also  named 
Xehemiah.  He  was  Ixini  in  1731.  and  died  April 
25,  1821.  He  wxs  also  a  soldier  in  the  American 
Revolution,  and  was  Quartermaster  of  the  "  Or- 
ange County  Minutemen,"  which  company  was 
commis-sioned  January  5,  1776.  The  following 
entries  from  "Archives  of  the  State  of  Xew  York, 
The  Revolution,"  pp.  197  and  233,  give  what 
Ls  known  of  his  services: 

"Carpenter.   Xehemiah,     Hn.sign,   Appd  June 
29,  '81,  to  date  from  June  5,  '79,  when  mustered 
as  Ensign  5th  X.  Y.,  late  Qr.  Mr.  5lh  X.  Y.,  re 
tume<l  from  captivity." 

■  CanKiiler.  Xehemiah,  Ensign  in  5lh  X.  Y., 
as  yr.  Mr.  Xov.  21.  '76,  omitted  July,  '80,  June 
25.  '79,  mu.st'd  to  Jan.,    82." 

His  father  was  also  Xehemiah,  and  was  a 
blacksmith.      He  was  bom  probably  about   1700, 


and  died  in  1783,  in  Orange  County,  N.  Y.      His 
father  was  John  Carj>entcr.  Jr  ,  known  as  "Young 
C.ipt.  John."      He  was  Ijoni  at  Janiaii..i.  X    \' 
alx)ut  1654,  and  died  alxiut  1735. 

Young  Capt.   John's   father  was  John   Car|jcn 
ter,  known  as  "Old  Capt.   John,"  who  was  born 
in  England  in  1627.  and  died  in  1695.      He  came 
to  America  with   his  father.  William   Caq)enler 
This  William  Carpenter  was  Iwm  in  England  in 
1605,  and  came  over  from  Wherewell,  Wiltshire, 
England,    in   the    ship    "Bevis.  "    in    1638       He 
lande<l  at  Reholxith,  Mass.      He  was  a  carpenter 
by  trade.     Besides  his  children,  he  brought  with 
him  to  America  his  aged  father,  also  named  Will 
iam. 

The  children  of  Xehemiah  and  Anna  Carpen 
ter  were:  Xehemiah,  Ixjni  August  13,  1798,  who 
died  May  24.  1X25:  \liet,  bom  July  2.  1801,  who 
died  alx>ut  1884;  Xancy,  bom  Januar>-  18,  1804. 
who  dietl  Januan,  4.  1H15;  and  William.  Iwm 
May  I,  1806,  who  died  May  7.  1875. 

William  Carpenter  and  Mar>-  Hollister  were 
married  Januar>-  19.  1832.  Their  children  were: 
Charles,  born  September  23,  1833:  Hubert,  bom 
February  8,  1837,  and  who  dietl  May  6,  1864: 
and   Abiah,  bom  Septeml)er  22.  1838. 

William  CarjHrnter.  the  father  of  the  subject  of 
our  -sketch,  was  a  successhil  farmer.  He  was 
known  as  a  man  who  had  the  courage  of  his  con- 
victions. For  many  \ears  he  was  a  memlier  of 
the  Presbyterian  Church.  Early  in  the  agitation 
against  slaver> ,  Mr.  Caqx-nter  became  an  Al)oli- 
tionist.  This  doctrine  at  that  time  was  an  un- 
popular one.  He  attempted  to  work  a  reforma- 
tion in  his  own  church  in  its  attitude  toward 
slavery.  The  memlxrrs  did  not  yield  easily,  and 
he  finally  called  them  sharply  to  account  for  what 
he  coiisidereKl  to  W  an  ino>nsislenc>  lietween  their 
doctrine  and  their  |)erlomiances.  The  rivint  m.ts 
that  he  was  expelled  from  the  church. 

Mary  Hollisti-r.  his  wife,  was  born  Januarx  2. 
I  Sol.  and  died  March  2«.  1846.  She  was  a  de 
scendant  of  Lieut.  John  Hollister,  of  Wethersfield, 
Conn.,  who  came  to  America  from  I^ngland  aliout 
if>42.  He  was  of  good  family  and  well  e<hicated, 
and  immediately  became  <ine  of  the  most  note<l 
and  influential  men  of  Wethersfield  and  of  Con- 


270 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


necticut  Colony,  and  held  both  civil  and  military 
positions  of  importance  for  many  years.  He  died 
in  April,  1665.  His  second  residence,  an  unusu- 
ally fine  one  for  the  times,  still  stands  on  the  land 
he  owned.  His  wife,  Joanna,  was  a  daughter  of 
Hon.  Richard  Treat,  Sr. ,  one  of  the  first  settlers 
and  most  prominent  men  of  Connecticut  Colony. 
Robert  Treat,  her  brother,  was  for  many  A'ears 
Governor  of  Connecticut. 

The  succe.ssion  descends  through  John  Hollister, 
Jr.  ( born  in  1 644,  died  in  1 7 1 1  ) ,  who  married  Sarah 
Goodrich,  who  came  from  one  of  the  first  families 
of  Connecticut;  thence  through  Joseph  Hollister, 
(born  July  8,  1674,  died  July  9,  1746);  thence 
through  Capt.  Timothy  Hollister,  who  was  En- 
sign in  1742,  and  Captain  in  1750,  of  the  Twelfth 
Company  of  the  Sixth  Regiment  of  the  Colony, 
and  who,  with  his  eldest  son,  Joseph,  was  killed 
by  the  Indians  at  Wyoming  Flats,  Pa.,  October 
15.  1763;  and  thence  through  Asa  Holli.ster 
(born  December  9,  1758,  died  April  16,  1839), 
who  moved  to  America,  Dutchess  County,  N.  Y., 
in  1 78 1,  where  he  died.     He  was  a  mason. 

William  Carpenter  moved  to  Dryden,  Tompkins 
County,  N.  Y.,  when  Charles  was  a  child,  and 
there  the  latter  grew  up.  He  had  about  the  us- 
ual experiences  of  farmer  boys,  with  hard  work 
during  the  summer  and  some  schooling  during  the 
winter.  As  soon  as  old  enough  he  began  teach- 
ing school.  In  February,  1857,  he  went  to  Chi- 
cago, where  he  obtained  employment  for  a  time. 
But  the  financial  crash  of  that  year  came  and  he 
was  out.  He  worked  as  a  book-keeper  during 
the  winter  of  1857  a'^'l  1858,  and  at  anything  he 
could  get  during  the  following  summer.  In  the 
fall  of  the  latter  year  he  came  to  Downer's  Grove 
and  taught  school  here  during  the  winter  of  1858 
and  1859.  Not  finding  satisfactory  employment, 
he  went  to  Mi.ssouri  in  the  fall  of  1859  and  taught 
school  for  nearl>'  a  year,  but  as  the  political  cam- 
paign then  became  too  hot  for  a  Northern  man,  he 
came  back  to  Downer's  Grove  in  the  fall  of  i860, 
and  taught  again  during  the  winter  of  i860  and 
1861. 

When  Sumter  was  fired  upou,  Mr.  Carpenter 
enlisted,  in  April,  1861,  and  was  mustered  into 
the  service  Ma}-  24,  1861,  for  three  years,  in  Capt. 


Walter  Blanchard's  company  CK)  of  the  Thir- 
teenth Illinois  Infantry,  at  Di.xon,  111.  He 
shared  the  usual  vicissitudes  of  the  .soldier  in  the 
ranks.  The  regiment  moved  from  Dixon  to 
Ca.seyville,  111.,  and  thence  to  RoUa,  Mo.  Here  it 
stayed  .several  months  guarding  the  town  and  the 
railroad.  That  this  monotonous,  tiying  service 
was  not  unimportant  or  unappreciated,  is  shown 
by  what  Gen.  Dyon  said,  as  follows: 

"As  this  line  (Southwest  Branch  of  the  Pacific 
Railroad )  has  become  the  most  important  in  the 
whole  State,  and  as  it  is  threatened  by  hostile 
bands  under  Gen.  McBride  and  others,  it  has  been 
deemed  best  to  place  it  under  the  command  of 
Col.  Wyman,  Thirteenth  Illinois  Volunteers." 

The  regiment's  reputation  is  shown  by  what 
Adjt.-Gen.  Harding  said  to  Gen.  Lyon:  "Wy- 
man's  is  a  splendid  regiment,  and  1  am  trying  to 
get  other  troops  to  supply  his  place  and  send  him 
forward."  But  the  Thirteenth  was  glad  when  fi- 
nally the  order  to  mo\-e  came. 

The  march  of  Gen.  Curtis'  army  from  Rolla, 
Mo.,  to  Helena,  Ark.,  in  which  the  Thirteenth 
took  part,  was  remarkable  in  many  respects,  and 
as  a  test  of  .soldierly  qualities  and  endurance  was 
much  more  .severe  than  Sherman's  march  to  the 
sea.  The  distance  actually  covered  was  twelve 
hundred  miles.  At  one  time  the  army  was  not 
heard  from  for  five  weeks.  The  country  was 
rough  and  poor,  hardly  affording  sub.sistence  for 
its  own  scattering  population.  Often  the  supply 
trains  were  stuck  in  the  nuid  miles  behind  the  main 
arni)-,  and  thus  the  rations  were  .short.  For  in- 
stance, a  diary  said:  "To-day  we  had  but  a  small 
piece  of  corn  bread  to  the  man,  and  nothing  to 
cook  for  supper. ' '  The  following  quotation  from 
the  same  diary  gives  an  inkling  of  what  the  sol- 
diers suffered: 

"  Left  camp  at  2  A.  m.  and  made  one  of  the 
longest,  hardest  marches  ever  known.  The  sun 
was  scorching  and  the  dust  blinding.  There  were 
few  wells  on  the  route,  and  we  were  parched  with 
thirst.  One  and  even  two  dollars  were  offered  for 
a  canteen  of  water,  but  money  was  no  object. 
Men  would  stay  for  hours  at  a  well,  till  all  the 
troops  had  pa.ssed,  before  they  could  fill  their  can- 
teens. For  thirt\--two  miles  we  toiled  on,  and 
then  found  a  small,  filthy  lake  in  a  cypress  swamp, 
near  which  we  pitched  our  tents.     We  were  ready 


S.    I-',   ("fkiivs 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL    RKCORD. 


271 


to  rest  here,  ami  iiu>st  of  us,  tootircil  tocat,  threw 
ourselves  on  the  grouiul.  and  only  arose  at  tririlU 
the  next  morniiiK"' 

Hut  finalK   Hekiia  was  reachetl.      Heretlierej^ 
jmeiit  did  >;arrison  duty    for  several   inonllis,  the 
only   changes  Ijeing  skirmishes  with  the  enemy 
and  siimtinv;  and  foraging  ex]>cditions. 

On  I)eceinlK.r  20,  iStu.  the>  left  Helena  to  go 
down  the  Mississippi  River  to  fonn  a  part  of  Gen. 
Sherman's  army  that  was  to  attack  Vickshurg. 
Det^vmber  2S  and  J9  they  were  in  iIr-  thick  of  the 
battle  of  Chickasaw  Bayou.  The  fighting  on  the 
jStli  was  not  decisive.  Late  in  the  aflerm  on  of 
that  day  Gen.  F.  P.  Blair  ordered  the  Thirteenth 
to  cross  the  bayou,  saying,  "I'll  .see  if  you  can  stand 
mud  and  water  as  well  as  you  can  stand  fire."  The 
crossing  was  made,  but  darkness  came  on  and 
stoppe<l  further  forward  movement,  and  the  regi- 
ment withdrew.  Karly  on  the  da\  of  the  29th  the 
Thirteenth  formetl  a  portion  of  the  bwly  of  triwps 
that  made  one  of  the  bravest  charges  of  the  war, 
— across  the  bayou  and  up  the  heights  guarded 
by  the  reljels.  They  captured  the  first  set  of 
rebel  intrenchments  and  would  have  carried  the 
rest,  if  the  attack  from  the  rear  by  other  forces, 
which  was  a  part  of  the  scheme,  had  not  failed. 
In  this  charge  Mr.  Carpenter  was  captured.  The 
circumstances  of  the  ca]>ture  are  told  by  Chajjlain 
Needham,  of  the  Thirteenth,  on  page  634  of  the 
history  of  that  regiment,  as  follows: 

"  I  record  it  with  i>ride  that  those  of  us  who 
were  captured  at  Chicka.s;iw  Haycju  fell  into  the 
euenn's  hands  l)ecau<ie.  ol)eying  the  first  order  to 
■  "Charge,  ■■  and  not  hearing  the  counter-order, 
"  Retreat,"  we  pre.ssed  forward  through  the  dense 
smoke  of  the  enemy's  artillery  till  Ix'yond  the 
reach  of  support.  Surrounded  by  the  enemy,  the 
few  of  us  who  were  left  alive  had  no  alternative 
but  til  surrender  singly  or  in  small  s<|nads  to  a 
triumphant  enemy  Inrfore  and  iK-hind." 

The  jirisoners  were  taken  into  \icksburg,  where 
they  remained  until  January  31.  Thence  they 
went  to  Jackson,  Miss.,  where  they  stayed  until 
March  13,  when  they  were  turned  over  to  Gen. 
Banks,  then  commanding  at  New  Orleans.  In 
thcM.-  rel»el  i)ristjns  they  suffered  the  usual  treat- 
ment accorded  to  I'nion  jiri-soners.  Thev  were 
robl>ed  of  all  they  had,  star^■ed,  frozen  and  neg- 
lected. 


Mr.  Car|X;nter  had  been  wounde<l  in  the  hand, 
and  was,  one  of  his  comrades  says,  a  thoroughly 
lugubrious  looking  man  as  he  stood  in  the  reljel 
enclosure,  trying  to  attend  to  his  bleeding  mem- 
ber and  refli-cting  on  the  prospect  before  him. 
But  that  he  was  still  really  full  of  fight  is  shown 
by  the  following  occurrence:  Said  a  relK-1  officer 
to  him:  "  Have  you  not  got  enough  of  this  ?  " 
The  instant  an.swer  was:  "  W'e  expect  to  come 
back  and  try  it  over  again  as  .soon  as  we  can." 
This  was  not  what  the  rel)el  exixctetl,  and  he 
could  only  express  his  disgust  by  .saying:  '  Von 
are  a  d fool." 

The  iuicom]>romising  loyalty  of  the  men  of  the 
Thirtc-enth  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  some  of  the 
weak-kneed  I'nion  prisoners  tried  to  organize  a 
I  movement  to  take  some  sort  of  an  oath  and  get 
released,  but  that  they  did  not  dare  eveji  to  ask 
the  Thirteenth  jHjople  if  they  wantetl  to  come  in. 
The>  knew  what  their  answer  wimld  be.  The 
latter  i)art  of  April  they  were  put  on  Ixiard  ship 
and  sent  to  New  York.  Thence  they  went  to 
Amiapolis,  Md..  and  to  St.  Louis,  Mo.,  where  the 
camp  for  paroled  prisoners  was  situated.  Mr. 
Carpenter,  not  liking  the  prospect  of  lying  in  a 
camp  indefinitely  as  a  paroled  prisoner,  came  to 
Downer's  Grove,  where  he  arrived  May  24,  1863, 
just  two  years  from  the  date  of  his  muster  into 
service. 

On  May  27,  1863,  Mr.  Carpenter  was  married 
to  Mary  Blanchard,  they  having  been  engaged 
for  sf)me  time  l)efore  the  breaking  out  of  the  war. 
Hf  was  shortly  afterward  a.ssigned  to  duty  as  Re- 
jKirter  to  the  nulitary  courts  then  in  session  in 
St.  Louis.  This  .service  was  valuable,  civilians 
Inring  paid  $70  jier  week  for  it.  Mr.  Carjienter 
as  a  private  soldier  received  S' 3  per  month,  and 
was  kept  at  St.  Louis  in  that  work  until  the  reg- 
iment was  nmstere<l  out.  June  i.s,  1864. 

Kor  several  months  thereafter  our  subject  re- 
ported for  the  military  courts  in  St.  Louis,  on 
orders  from  the  War  Department.  The  winter  of 
1865-1866  he  reixirted  the  Kentucky  Legislature 
at  I'rankfort  for  the  I/misville  Journal.  I^nler 
he  came  North,  taught  schix)l  for  several  years, 
and  finally  went  back  to  re|x)rting.     He  has  lived 


272 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


in  Downer's  Grove  continuously  since  1868,  and 
is  still  a  court  reporter  in  Chicago.  | 

Not  having  been  a  politician,  unless  having  al- 
■ways  voted  Republican  tickets  maketvour  subject 
one,  he  has  never  held  public  office  except  as 
Village  Clerk,  member  of  the  Village  Board,  and 
for  a  number  of  years  School  Director  and  mem- 
ber of  the  Board  of  Education. 

Charles  Carpenter  and  Marj'  (Blanchard)  Car- 
penter had  the  following  children:     Walter  Hu- 
bert,   born    February    10,    1865;    William    Mon- 
telle,  born  October  15,  1866;    Charles  Vliet,  born 
September  9,  1868;    Carrie  Mariam,  born  March 
TO,  1872,  who  died  December  5,  1879;  and  Nehe- 
miah,  born   August  26,  1876,  who  died  August 
30,  1877.      These  children  are  proud  of  being  de- 
scendants of  or  closely  connected  with  many  men 
who  considered  it  to  be  their  duty  to  support  the 
Government  with  arms  on  numerous  occasions. 
Their  father  was  a  soldier  in  the  Rebellion,  their 
mother's  father  was  a  .soldier  in  the  Rebellion,  as 
were  her  two  brothers  and  eight  of  her  uncles  and 
cousins   on    her   mother's   side.     Their    father's 
brother,  Hubert  Carpenter,  was  Finst  Lieutenant 
of    Company    E,    Seventy-sixth   New  York   In- 
fantry,   and    Adjutant    of  the   regiment.     Their 
maternal  great-grandfather  was  a   soldier  in  the 
War  of  181 2,  and  three  of  his  older  brothers  were 
minutenien  and    fought  at  Lexington,    the  first 
battle  of  the  Revolution.     Their  paternal  great- 
o-randfather  was  a  soldier  under  Washington  and 
Putnam  in  the  Revolution,  and  their  great-great- 
grandfather   was  Ensign   and   Quarterma.ster    in 
the  Revolution. 

Walter  H.  Carpenter  has  taught  .school  for  a 
number  of  years,  in  Illinois  and  Mi.ssouri.  He  is 
unmarried,  and  is  still  teaching  school. 

William  M.  has  a  responsible  position  in  the  fi- 
nancial department  of  a  large  corporation  in  Chi- 
cago. He  married  Florrie  M.  Schofield,  of 
Downer's  Grove,  July  7,  1888.  They  had  two 
children;  Hubert  Montelle,  born  June  16,  1889; 
and  Ella  Blanchard,  born  December  19,  1890. 
Mrs.  Carpenter  died  November  10,  1893. 
obituary. 

November  17,  1893. 
Died  at  her  pleasant  home  in  our  village,  Flor- 


rie, wife  of  W.  M.  Carpenter  and  daughter  of 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  L.  G.  Schofield,  in  the  twenty-sev- 
enth year  of  her  age.  Mrs.  Carpenter  had  been 
suffering  for  some  time  from  a  difficulty  that  had 
affected  her  nervous  .system.  It  was  hoped  that 
it  would  yield  to  treatment,  but  .she  had  an  attack 
of  acute  meningitis  that  caused  her  death  last 
Friday,  November  10.  Funeral  services  were 
held  at  the  hou.se  last  Sunday  afternoon,  con- 
ducted by  Rev.  J.  C.  Myers.  Beautiful  in  hfe,  she 
was  al.so  so  in  death.  The  flowers  that  bedecked  her 
coffin  were  fit  emblems  of  her  purity.  After  five 
years  of  happy  married  life,  she  left  a  home  deso- 
late, with  a  devoted  husband  and  two  children  to 
mourn  her  loss. — Downer's  Grove  Reporter. 

C.  Vliet  is  Private  Secretary  to  the  General 
Manager  of  the  Chicago,  Burlington  &  Quincy 
Railroad.  He  married  Gussie  A.  Seidler,  Octo- 
ber 29,  1890.  They  have  one  child,  Brian  Vliet 
Montelle,  who  was  born  September  8,  1891. 

Marj-  (Blanchard)  Carpenter  died  April  i,  1893. 
The  following  may  be  appropriately  quoted  in 
this  connection: 

April  7,  1893. 

A  httle  more  than  two  weeks  ago  Mary  (Blanch- 
ard) Carpenter  left  here  to  visit  her  sister,  Mrs. 
Dearmond,  at  Fairfax,  Mo.  Mrs.  Carpenter  had 
been  an  invalid  for  some  time,  but  all  expected  to 
see  her  back  again  improved.  The  change  .seemed 
to  do  her  good.  Friday  noon  she  wrote  to  those 
at  home  that,  "  on  the  whole,"  she  was  better. 
But  the  same  afternoon,  while  letters  from  her 
children  were  being  read  to  her,  she  was  suddenly 
attacked  by  a  stupor,  from  which  .she  did  not 
rally.  Death  came  at  8.40  p.  m.,  Saturday,  April 
I.  One  son  was  at  the  bedside  at  Fairfax,  and 
the  husband  and  two  other  sons  were  hurr3-ing  to 
her  as  fast  as  steam  could  carry  them.     ^ 

Mrs.  Carpenter  had  often  said  that  she  wished 
to  die  without  warning  or  long  suffering,  and  her 
wish  was  granted.  One  of  her  sons  had  been 
away  from  home  for  some  months,  and  she  had 
been  pining  to  see  him.  But  a  few  days  before 
her  death  they  had  spent  some  time  together. 
Although  away  from  home,  she  was  with  others 
who  loved  her,  and  was  happy  and  contented. 
The  summons  came  unexpectedly,  and  amidst  her 
happiness  and  content,  and  while  she  was  listen- 
ing to  messages  from  her  dear  ones,  she  passed 
from  the  life  here  to  the  life  everlasting  without 
warning  or  .suff'ering. 

Mrs.  Carpenter  was  an  old  settler  here.  The 
daughter  of  Capt.  Walter  Blanchard,  who  was  so 
well  and  honorably  known  here  before  and  dur- 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


•»73 


ing  the  war,  she  wa.s  Inini  i>ii  the  20th  of  Ma\ , 
1836.  at  Yates,  Orleans  County,  N.  V.  Her 
mother  was  Mariam  (  Daniels  j  Blanchanl.  She 
came  to  iKnvner's  Grove  in  1S3S,  and  Iuls  live<l 
here  ever  since,  amidst  her  family  ami  relatives, 
except  for  the  tin>e  she  >j)enl  Mast  at  sc1hh>1  ami 
South  durin>»  and  after  the  war. 

May  27,  1863,  she  was  married  to  Charles  Car- 
jK-nter  at  IKjwner's  Grove.  Living  only  for  her 
liusltand  and  children,  slie  was  all  that  a  wife  and 
mother  should  lie — and  what  more  than  this  can 
be  said  ? — Downers  Grove  Kfporlti . 


Ai'RiL  14.  1893. 

CoMR.\DES  OF  N.M'ER  PusT; — Once  more  death 
has  clainietl  one  of  our  nearest  and  dearest  frieiuls. 
one  related  to  us  by  near  and  dear  ties,  a  daugh- 
ter of  a  s«)ldier.  the  wife  of  a  soldier,  the  sister  of 
soldiers,  and  one  who  was  always  the  warm  friend 
of  a  soldier,  and  in  view  of  these  facts  it  seems 
ri^ht  and  projK'r  that  this  Post  do  adopt  the  fol- 
lowing resolutions: 

Whkrkas:  It  has  pleasetl  Divine  Providence 
to  remove  by  death  the  esteemetl  and  beloved  wife 
of  Charles  Carix-iiter.  therefore. 

Rfsolitd.  That  we  tender  to  our  liereaved  com- 
rade and  his  family,  and  to  the  brothers  whose 
sister  has  pa.s-sed  on  to  that  lietter  land,  our  heart- 
felt sympathies  for  them  in  their  t>ereavemenl. 
We  all  share  in  the  great  loss  which  you  have 
suslaine<l.  but  we  hojie  to  meet  her  again  when 
parting  shall  be  no  more. 

One  day  we  shall  tind. 
In  Uie  linittU-r>s  duuie. 
The  lieautiful  lionie 
Of  ourlovetJ  oni-s  gone. 

T    S.   RcXiKKS,  G.  S.   HlclHKS. 

Commander.  Adjutant. 

— Downer's  Grove  Reporter. 


(...ii.  while  living  always  brought  cheer  and  in- 
spiratiim  to  (jur  reunions  and  i-amp-fires.  may  our 
unitetl  sympathies  serve  to  di-sjiel.  stuuewhat,  the 
shallow  hanging  over  Comratle  Car])cnter's  deso- 
late home,  and  the  hearts  of  himself  and  kinilred 
Ik-  strengtheiieil  an<l  suslaine<l  in  their  great  af- 
fliction.     And  Ik;  it  further 

AVW:v</,  That  as  death  carries  memory  with  it 
to  the  grave,  the  virtues  of  our  lovetl  ones  lost 
should  go  into  recorde<l  history,  so  as  ntJt  to  be 
forgotten;  and  that  the  death  of  our  patriot  wo- 
men should  find  its  appropriate  record  alongside 
that  of  the  veteran  soldier.  —  The  livening  Tele 
graph,  Dixon.  111. 


l)K.\TH    01     MK>.    CH.VKl.K-S    L  AKli.N  1  l.K. 

M.w  25,  1893. 

\Vhkke.\s;  The  sacrifices  of  our  noble  I'nion 
wfimen  were  scarcely  less  instniinental  in  the  sup- 
prcvNion  of  the  Great  Retx-llion  tha'i  were 
tli<>>c  nf  the  patriots  who  shouldered  the  nuisket 
and  niarcheil  to  the  front  in  1.S61;  and 

\V)iKKK.\s;  These  patriot  mothers,  wives,  sis- 
ters and  daughters,  with  the  dying  veterans,  are 
also  fast  p.Lssing  away :  therefore, 

h'esoheJ.  That  the  as.s<K-ialion  of  the  surviving 
veterans  of  the  Thirteenth  Regiment    Illinois  In 
fantry    has   heard  with    i)rofound    >orrow  of  the 
death  of  Mrs.  Charles  Carpctiter.  and  as  her  pres- 


w 


II.LIA.M  GKORGE  SMITH,  Polic-e  Mag 
istrate  of  W'heaton,  is  among  the  early  and 
honored  residents  of  DuPage  County.  His 
ancestors  were  Huglisli,  and  connecte<l  by  mar- 
riage with  the  Cha.se  family  of  that  kingdom, 
from  whom  an  estate  was  left  to  heirs  in  this 
country,  on  condition  that  they  produce  the  coat 
of  arms  as  evidence  of  heirship.  This  had  been 
given  to  children  to  play  with,  and  was  lost  before 
its  value  was  known.  William  Smith,  grand- 
father of  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  was  boni  in 
Lenox,  Mass.,  and  lived  there  until  seventy-five 
years  old,  when  he  went  to  \'ennont,  and  died 
there  at  the  age  of  eighty-.seven  years,  about 
1833.  He  was  a  cou.sin  of  John  Cotton  Smith. 
Governor  of  Connecticut.  His  children  were 
Ben.son,  John  C.  and  Rebecca.  The  latter  mar- 
ried a  man  named  Rowley,  and  was  left  a  widow 
at  Shoreham,  \'t.,  where  .she  resides  with  three 
children.  Ken.son  live<l  and  died  at  West  Haven, 
Vt. 

John  C.  Smith.  lx»ni  in  Berkshire  County, 
MasN.,  in  1778,  settled  in  West  Haven,  Rutland 
County,  Vt.,  where  he  was  killed  by  a  tree  he 
was  felling,  March  4,  1.H2.S.  His  wife,  Julia 
HitchoK'k,  bom  in  Connecticut,  was  a  daughter 
of  Zachariah  and  Mercy  (  Byingtou  )  Hitclict»ck. 
of  Scotch  and  English  descent.  John  C.  and 
Julia  Stuith  were  the  parents  often  children,  one 
!  of  whom  died  at  the  age  of  tw«)  years.  ICmelinc, 
;    wife  of  Levi  Barber,  died  in  Elgin,  111.      Isaac  H. 


274 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


died  in  New  York  City;  and  Mary  Ann,  Mrs. 
Timothy  Lanphere,  lived  in  West  Haven,  and 
died  there  on  the  4th  of  March,  1850.  John  B. 
was  a  wholesale  grocer  and  leather- dealer  in 
Montreal,  where  he  died,  and  William  G.  is  the 
next.  Charles  H.  was  Marshal  of  San  Jose,  Cal., 
and  was  stabbed  to  death  by  a  desperado  whom 
he  had  in  custody,  March  4,  1852.  Annah,  wife 
of  Linus  Cutts,  died  in  Northfield,  Minn.  Julia 
C.  is  the  widow  of  Russell  Manville,  residing  in 
Winfield  Township,  DnPage  County,  and  Rufus 
K.  was  lost  at  sea  on  a  fishing- vessel,  while  on  a 
voyage  for  his  health,  March  4,  1845.  March  4 
is  a  fateful  date  in  this  family. 

William  G.  Smith  was  born  in  West  Haven, 
Rutland  County,  Vt.,  September  6,  18 16,  and 
was  but  twelve  j'ears  old  when  his  father  died. 
From  this  time  he  maintained  himself,  and  had 
little  opportunity  to  attend  school.  He  worked 
at  farm  labor  until  he  was  sixteen  years  old,  and 
then  went  into  a  store  at  Fairhaven.  Here  his 
employer  was  burned  out,  and  he  went  to  Castle- 
ton,  where  he  was  employed  in  the  same  capacity. 
For  a  year  and  a-half  he  was  employed  in  the 
hotel  of  James  K.  Hyde,  well  known  throughout 
Vermont  as  a  rural  resort.  He  then  became  a 
peddler,  and  sold  notions,  and  later  clocks,  through 
New  England  and  in  Canada. 

In  the  spring  of  1837,  our  subject  went  to 
Lewis  County,  N.  Y.,  and  engaged  in  various  oc- 
cupations. He  kept  a  grocery,  and  for  two  years 
traveled  for  a  wholesale  grocery-house.  He  also 
operated  a  flax-mill  for  a  time,  and  again  dealt  in 
butter  and  cheese,  and  other  produce.  For  three 
years  he  was  Deputy  vSheriflfand  Constable  in  that 
county.  In  the  mean  time  he  took  up  the  study 
of  law,  but  was  compelled  to  abandon  it  through 
weakness  of  his  ej^es.  At  Leyden,  N.  Y.,  Janu- 
ary- 9,  1844,  he  married  Catharine  Miller,  who 
died,  childless,  sixteen  months  later.  In  1846 
he  went  to  White  Hall,  N.  Y.,  and  engaged  in  the 
grocerj-  business.  On  the  i8th  of  July,  the  fol- 
lowing year,  he  was  again  married,  the  bride  be- 
ing Mary  E.  Manville,  a  native  of  that  town, 
daughter  of  Daniel  and  Jerusha  (Hurlburt)  Man- 
ville, of  old  New  England  families,  and  born  in 
Connecticut,  the  former  at  Woodbury.     In  1848 


he  visited  Illinois,  and  tilled  a  piece  of  land  near 
Warreiiville  through  the  summer.  Returning  to 
New  York,  he  sailed  on  the  steamer  ' '  John  Gil- 
pin ' '  two  years. 

In  1853  Mr.  Smith  became  a  permanent  resi- 
dent of  Illinois,  and  three  years  later  bought  a 
piece  of  land  near  Huntley,  McHenry  County, 
which  he  tilled  five  years,  and  afterward  lived 
three  years  at  Warrenville.  In  the  mean  time  he 
continued  reading  law,  and  began  practicing  in 
justice  courts.  Since  1864  he  has  been  a  resident 
of  Wheaton,  and  in  1867  he  was  admitted  to  the 
Bar  of  the  Circuit  Court.  He  continued  in  prac- 
tice until  1S85,  when  he  was  compelled  by  failing 
health  to  retire.  He  was  State's  Attorney  from 
1872  to  1876.  While  a  resident  of  Huntley,  he 
served  as  Assessor,  and  was  for  two  years  Coroner 
of  McHenry  County,  from  1858-60.  For  over  thir- 
t>'  years  he  has  been  a  Notary  Public,  and  is  now 
filling  his  fourth  term  as  Justice  of  the  Peace.  He 
has  been  for  forty  years  a  member  of  the  Method- 
ist Church,  is  a  Master  Mason,  and  has  sustained 
the  Republican  part}-  since  its  organization,  in 
which  he  took  an,  active  part.  While  in  the  prac- 
tice of  law,  Mr.  Smith  did  an  extensive  business, 
and  possessed  the  confidence  of  a  large  constitu- 
ency. While  assisting  the  Sheriflf  to  arrest  an 
in.sane  man,  one  day  in  June,  1876,  Mr.  Smith  re- 
ceived a  blow  on  the  head  from  a  stone  in  the 
hand  of  the  prisoner,  and  this  resulted,  four  years 
later,  in  a  severe  stroke  of  apoplexy,  which  com- 
pelled him  to  resign  from  active  participation  in 
trials,  and  he  resigned  his  law  business  in  the 
capacity  of  attorney.  He  is  the  agent  and  re- 
porter of  several  collection  agencies,  and  does  a 
quiet  business,  which  occupies  a  mind  that  could 
not  be  content  to  remain  idle. 

Mr.  Smith  is  a  thorough  type  of  the  New  Eng- 
land American,  and  a  kindly,  genial  man,  to  meet 
whom  is  a  pleasure.  He  is  possessed  of  a  large 
frame,  with  commanding  presence,  and  his  benev- 
olent face,  framed  in  the  white  hair  and  beard  of 
seventy-seven  years,  is  the  index  of  a  contented 
mind,  the  result  of  a  life  well  spent.  Of  his  three 
children,  two  are  now  living,  namely:  Susan  P. 
and  Charles  B.,  both  residents  of  Wheaton,  the 
former  being  the  wife  of  Capt.  J.  J.  Cole.     Viola 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL    RECORD. 


'73 


M..  born  in  White  Hall  July  22.  1848.  died  at  the 
age  of  eight  years.  After  fortj-six  years  of  life 
together.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Smith  are  .still  pemiitti-d 
to  pursue  the  even  tenor  of  conjugal  life,  in  the 
midst  of  their  children  and  grandchildren. 


}^-^ 


.>tt=_ 


jTl  gV:NK  \V  FARRAR.  an  honored  pioneer 
1^  of  DuPage  County,  was  bom  in  what  is 
I  in)w  D<-)wner"s Grove.  July  24.  iS.^5.  and  his 
home  is  still  in  this  town.  His  parents.  Luther 
and  Emeline  (Stanley)  Farrar,  were  natives  of 
Pennsylvania,  and  the  father  was  of  French  ex- 
traction. They  had  only  two  children.  Eugene  W . . 
and  Jud.son  \V..  who  enlisted  for  the  late  war  in 
Septemlier.  1.S62.  as  a  private  of  Company  E. 
Eighth  Illinois  Cavalry.  His  death  resulted  from 
a  wound  made  by  a  cannon  ball  at  the  battle 
of  Beverly  Ford,  and  his  remains  were  brought 
l>ack  to  this  county,  and  interrc*!  in  Stanley 
Cenieten.-.  The  father  was  a  hatter  b\-  trade, 
and  in  1.S35  came  to  Illinois,  locating  on  a  tract 
of  land  which  had  previou.sly  been  located  by  his 
Mnfe.  He  there  erected  a  log  cabin,  one  mile 
west  of  Downer's  Grove,  but  was  not  long  per- 
mitted to  eJijoy  his  new  home,  for  he  died  in  May, 
1836,  and  was  the  first  person  buried  in  Stanley 
Cemeter>-.  In  the  previous  Octoljer  he  had  se- 
lected the  site  for  the  cemeten.-.  little  thinking  he 
should  be  the  first  laid  there.  His  wife  had 
come  to  this  county  with  her  brothers  and  par 
ents  in  i«35-  After  her  hu.sl«nd's  death  she 
continued  on  the  old  homestead,  and  later  was 
married  to  Hiram  Standish.  by  whom  she  had 
four  children:  Julia  A.,  wife  of  Walter  Shepher<l: 
Emma,  wife  of  Samuel  Barr:  F^eline.  wife  of 
William  Blanchard:  and  Edward.  The  mother 
was  one  of  the  first  school  teachers  in  this  coun- 
ty, and  was  a  refined  and  cultured  lady,  who  had 
the  re^i^-ct  of  all  who  knew  her.  She  was  a 
memlxT  of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  and  died  in 
1847,  being  laid  to  rest  by  the  side  of  Mr.  Far- 
rar. 

The  gentleman  whose  name  heads  thus  sketch 
was  the  first  white  child  bom  in  Downer's  Grove 


Township,  his  birth  occurring  in  a  log  cabin, 
then  the  only  house  on  the  site  of  the  town.  He 
grew  to  manhcMKl  on  his  father's  farm,  and  early 
became  familiar  with  farm  life  in  all  its  details. 
His  educational  pri\ileges  were  those  that  could 
Ixf  obtaine<l  in  a  log  schoolhouse.  He  can  well 
rcmeml)cr  the  Indians  wlm  live<l  in  the  neighbor- 
hood, and  the  uasettletl  condition  of  the  county 
at  that  time.  In  1S50.  at  the  age  of  fifteen,  he 
left  home  and  went  to  Harford.  Pa.,  to  live  with 
relatives,  there  remaining  three  years,  during 
which  time  he  clerked  in  a  store  and  attended 
school  for  one  year.  In  i}<5,^.  he  returned  to 
Downer's  Grove,  and  Ix^gan  working  as  a  farm 
hand.  In  1S55.  we  fin<l  him  in  Chicago,  where 
he  worked  in  a  hotel  for  a  time,  and  then  spent 
one  year  as  second  mate  on  the  I.,akes.  Onc« 
more  returning  to  this  county,  he  worke<l  at  gen- 
eral lalx>r  until  the  breaking  out  of  the  late  war, 
when  he  entered  the  service  of  his  countrx'. 

Hardly  had  the  struggle  commencetl.  when,  on 
the  14th  of  May,  is6i,  Mr.  Farrar  joineii  the 
boys  in  blue  of  Company  K,  Thirteenth  Illinois 
Iiifantr>'.  for  three  montlis'  ser\'ice.  and  on  the 
24th  of  the  same  month  he  eidisted  for  three 
years.  He  was  musteretl  in  at  Dixon.  111.,  going 
to  St.  Louis,  and  thence  to  RoUa.  Mo.  From 
tliere  the  regiment  went  to  Linn  Creek,  join- 
ing Fremont's  command,  and  accompanying  them 
U>  Springfield,  that  State.  The  first  imjxjrtant 
engagement  in  which  he  participated  was  at 
Chickasaw  Bayou.  He  afterwards  took  part  in 
the  l>attle  of  Arkaii.sas  Po.st.  Jack.s<iii,  Miss.,  and 
the  entire  siege  of  X'ickslmrg.  At  twcl\e  o'cl<x~k 
on  the  night  following  the  surrender,  the  troops 
started  for  Jack.son,  and  jwrticipatcd  in  the  liat- 
tle  at  that  place  and  the  cugagementsat  .Meridian. 
Lookout  Mountain,  Missionary-  Ridge,  and  Ring- 
gold. Ga.  He  was  mustered  into  service  as 
Corporal,  aiwl  when  inustcrc«l  out  was  Sergeant. 
After  three  years  of  faithful  service,  he  receiveil 
an  honorable  discharge,  June  28,  1S64. 

Mr.  Fa.rrar  at  oiux-  returne<l  home,  and  in  the 
Chicago,  Burlington  S:  Quincy  Railroad  office 
leanie<l  telegraphy.  He  was  first  a])i>ointe<l 
o]>erator  at  Hiiisihile.  hut  after  a  few  months  was 
transferred  to  Downer's  Grove,   where  he  serxed 


276 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


as  agent  and  operator  for  ten  years.  A  year  and 
a-half\vas  then  spent  elsewhere,  after  which  we 
again  find  him  in  Downer's  Grove,  filling  the 
same  office,  which  he  then  held  continuously  until 
1 88 1,  when  he  embarked  in  merchandising.  For 
three  years  he  carried  on  operations  along  that 
line,  and  since  that  time  has  been  a  contract 
painter. 

On  the  loth  of  December,  1864,  Mr.  Farrar 
married  Miss  Martha  J.  Carpenter,  who  was  also 
bom  in  Downer's  Grove,  and  is  a  daughter  of 
Henn,'  and  Martha  ( Blanchard)  Carpenter.  Seven 
children  have  been  born  of  this  union:  Adelaide, 
wife  of  David  E.  McKee;  Luther  C,  Walter, 
Archie  C,  Edith,  Floyd  J.  and  Lynn  H.  All 
are  still  living,  and,  with  the  exception  of  the  eld- 
est daughter,  are  yet  with  their  parents.  The 
family  is  well  known  in  this  comnumity  and  their 
friends  throughout  the  neighborhood  are  many. 

In  his  social  relations,  Mr.  Farrar  is  a  Mason. 
He  is  akso  connected  with  the  Grand  Army  of 
the  Republic,  and  is  Past  Commander  of  the  post 
at  Downer's  Grove.  His  wife  holds  membership 
with  the  Congregational  Church,  In  politics, 
he  has  long  been  a  supporter  of  the  Republican 
party.  For  a  great  many  years  he  has  been 
President  of  the  vSchool  Board,  and  has  also  .served 
as  Township  Collector  and  Clerk.  The  confi- 
dence and  trust  repo.sed  in  him  are  indicated  by  his 
long  continuance  in  the  important  office  coiuiected 
with  the  educational  interests  of  the  communitw 


§-^+^1 


(TOHN  M.  WELLS,  notary  public,  real-estate 
I  dealer  and  insura^^ice  agent  of  Downer's 
G/  Grove,  claims  England  as  the  land  of  his 
birth.  He  was  born  in  We.st  Walton,  on  the 
30th  of  November,  1848,  and  his  parents,  Robert 
and  Sarah  (Maiming)  Wells,  were  also  natives  of 
the  same  country.  There  eight  children  were 
born  unto  them,  four  sons  and  four  daughters,  of 
whom  John  is  the  sixth  in  order  of  birth.  In 
1856,  the  father  and  his  family  left  England  and 
crossed  the  broad  Atlantic  to  America,  locating 
first   in    New  York.     On    the    28th   of  August, 


1862,  he  entered  the  service  of  his  adopted  coun- 
try and  was  assigned  to  Company  B,  One  Hun- 
dred and  Forty-sixth  Infantry.  He  enlisted  for 
three  \-ears,  but  on  the  19th  of  August,  1863,  on 
account  of  disability  caused  by  a  wound  received 
in  battle,  he  was  discharged.  His  death  occurred 
in  Rome,  N.  Y.,  when  about  sixty  years  of  age. 
His  wife  died  near  Clyde,  111.,  at  the  home  of 
her  daughter,  when  seventy-three  years  of  age. 

John  M.  Wells  remained  under  the  parental 
roof  until  a  youth  of  fourteen,  when,  in  1852,  he 
came  with  his  brother  to  the  New  World  and 
took  up  his  residence  in  Downer's  Grove  Town- 
ship, DuPage  County,  111.  During  the  summer 
months  he  worked  as  a  farm  hand,  and  in  the 
winter  season  he  attended  the  district  schools  of 
the  neighliorhood.  Subsequentl\-  he  worked  at 
brick-making  for  a  time,  and  on  abandoning  that 
pursuit  entered  the  employ  of  Thomas  Lyman, 
with  whom  he  remained  a  number  of  years  as 
manager  of  his  stock  farm.  In  1890,  he  opened 
the  real-estate  office  which  he  .still  conducts. 

On  the  i8th  of  April,  1871,  was  celebrated  the 
marriage  of  Mr.  Wells  and  Miss  Ai-villa  Bond,  of 
Naperville.  Their  union  has  been  blessed  with 
a  family  of  five  children,  four  of  whom  are  still 
living  at  this  writing,  in  the  winter  of  1893, 
namely:  William  R.,  who  is  employed  in  the  gen- 
eral office  of  the  Chicago,  Burlington  &  Quincy 
Railroad  in  Chicago;  Walter  E.,  who  follows  car- 
pentering; and  Charles  H.  and  Amy  June,  who  are 
attending  the  home  school.  Gracie  M.  died  at 
the  age  of  five  years. 

In  his  political  views,  Mr.  Wells  is  a  Republi- 
can, and  warmly  advocates  the  principles  of  his 
party.  Socialh-,  he  is  a  member  of  the  Modern 
Woodmen  of  America,  also  the  Ancient  Order  of 
United  Workmen,  in  which  he  holds  the  office  of 
Financier,  and  his  wife  is  a  member  of  the  Bap- 
tist Church,  to  the  support  of  which  Mr.  Wells 
makes  liberal  contributions.  He  is  a  public-spir- 
ited and  progressive  citizen,  who  is  ever  found  in 
the  front  rank  of  any  enterpri.se  calculated  to 
prove  of  public  benefit.  His  business  career  has 
been  one  of  constant  progress,  broadening  and 
deepening  continually.  As  he  had  no  capital  or 
special  privileges,  he  began  in   an  humble  posi- 


PORTRAIT  AND  UIUGRAPHICAL    RECORD. 


lion,  but  is  now  at  the  head  of  a  >»ood  real-estate 
business.  He  has  lived  a  quiet  life,  frev  from  os- 
tentation and  display,  but  is  well  like<l.  having  a 
large  ciR'le  of  warm  friends. 


r^-+^ 


c=^ 


|1I.I.IAM  J  HHRRING.  a  memlK-r  of  the 
linn  of  Herring  ^:  Dailey,  txuitractors  and 
builders  of  Downer's  CFrove.  is  one  of  the 
\MTtiiy  citizens  that  Kngland  has  furnished  to 
this  community.  He  was  boni  in  West  Walton, 
Norfolk,  on  Christmas  Kive  of  i«52,  and  is  the 
eldest  in  a  family  of  four  children,  three  sons  and 
a  daughter,  all  of  whom  are  still  living  in  the  Old 
Country  save  our  subject.  The  parents  are  Rol)- 
ert  and  Ann  i  Reader  >  Herring,  who  are  also  na- 
tives of  West  Walton.  The  father  has  l)een  a 
contractor  during  the  greater  part  of  his  life,  but 
is  now  living  retired  at  Newark,  on  the  Trent. 
He  has  reache<l  the  age  of  seventy -two  years, 
and  his  wife  is  now  sixty-two  years  of  age. 

Midst  play  and  work.  Mr.  Herring  of  this 
sketch  si>ent  his  youth.  He  also  attended  the 
common  .schixils,  where  he  acquired  a  good  Eng- 
lish education.  With  the  desire  to  seek  a  home 
in  America  and  try  his  fortune  in  this  land  of 
promise,  he  bade  adieu  to  home  and  friends  at  the 
age  of  seventeen  years  and  cros,sed  the  Atlantic. 
He  came  at  once  to  Dul'age  County.  111.,  and  for 
two  years  worked  as  a  fann  hand  in  Downer's 
Grove  Township.  He  then  went  to  Chicago, 
where  he  leanietl  the  carpenter  s  trade  with 
Thomas  Clark,  a  large  contractor  locatetl  on  the 
west  side  of  that  city  There  he  followetl  car- 
pentering until  the  spring  of  1877.  which  year 
witnes-sed  his  removal  to  Howard  County,  Iowa. 
In  that  State  he  worked  at  carjientering.  and  also 
engageil  in  farming,  until  the  fall  of  18K1.  when 
he  removed  to  Cass.  111.  One  year  was  spent  at 
carpenter  work  at  that  place,  and  in  18K2  he 
came  to  Downer's  Grove,  forming  a  iwrtner- 
ship  with  Mr.  Dailey.  As  contractors  and  build- 
ers they  began  <»perations.  and  their  patronage  has 
steadily  increasc<l.  until  they  now«loan  extensive 
business.     They  al!>o  run  a  planing-mill  here. 


An  imp«jrtant  event  in  the  life  of  Mr.  Herring 
occurTe<l  Jul>  19.  ts-h.  when  was  (.x-lebrate«l  his 
marriage  with  Miss  Maria  H.ilterham.  who  came 
to  America  fnmi  Eiiglan<l  when  a  child.  Their 
union  has  lieen  bU-s.se«l  with  three  son>  and  three 
daughters,  and  five  of  the  family  are  still  living, 
namely:  Annie  M..  Paul  W..  Earl  J..  Ralph  B 
and  Bessie  Grace  P..  the  fourth  child,  died  at 
the  age  of  three  years. 

S<KMally.  Mr.  Herring  is  connectetl  with  the 
Ancient  Order  of  I'nitetl  Workmen.  In  his  |K)- 
litical  views,  he  was  a  Republican  until  1.SS7.  but 
now  supports  the  Prohibition  party,  for  he  is  a 
warm  advocate  of  temiK'rance  principles.  For  a 
number  of  years,  he  has  liecn  a  faithful  member 
and  an  active  worker  in  the  Methotlist  Episcopal 
Church,  and  has  filled  nearly  all  its  offices.  He 
has  served  as  Superintendent  of  the  Sunday- 
school  for  several  years,  and  does  all  in  his  power 
to  upbuild  the  cause  of  Christianity.  Educational 
and  moral  interests  find  in  him  a  frieml.  and  he  is 
a  charitable  and  benevolent  man.  Mr.  Herring 
need  never  regret  his  emigration  to  America,  for 
here  he  has  found  a  pleasant  home  and  many 
friends,  and  has  succeeded  in  building  up  an  ex- 
tensive business. 


HON"  ROBERT  A  CHILDS  resides  in  Hins- 
dale, and  is  the  popular  Meml>er  of  Congress 
from  this  district.  His  career  has  been  an 
e.vemplary  one.  and  his  advancement  in  life  is  due 
to  merit  and  i>ersonal  effort.  The  histor>  of  Du- 
Page  County  would  l«e  ini-omplete  without  this 
record  of  his  life.  He  was  l)on»  in  Malone, 
Franklin  County,  X.  Y.,  March  22.  1845.  and  is 
a  -son  of  George  and  Calisla  (  Cofren  )  Childs,  the 
fonner  a  native  of  New  York,  and  the  latter  of 
Maine  The>  had  four  sons  and  two  daughters, 
but  only  three  are  now  living:  Corydon,  of  Ocon- 
omowiK-,  Wis  ;  Ida,  wife  of  Dr.  Charles  De 
Garino,  President  of  Swarthmore  College,  of 
Swarthmore,  Pa.;  and  Roliert  A.,  of  this  sketch. 
The  father  was  a  MetlnHiisi  minister,  and  in  1S53 
left   Franklin   County,  N,  Y..  removing   to  Wis- 


278 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


consin.  He  settled  near  Chemung,  where  he  en- 
gaged in  farming  and  preaching  as  a  circuit-rider. 
He  afterwards  removed  to  McHenry  County,  111., 
settling  near  Marengo,  and  about  1856  took  up  his 
residence  near  Belvidere,  in  Boone  County, where 
in  the  same  year  his  wife  died.  In  1858,  he  went 
to  Pike's  Peak  in  search  of  gold,  and  thence  to 
California,  where  his  death  occurred  in  1871.  He 
was  born  June  11,  18 12. 

The  paternal  grandfather  of  our  subject,  Jacob 
Childs,  was  born  in  New  York,  and  was  of  Eng- 
lish descent.  He  served  in  the  War  of  1812,  and 
died  when  past  the  age  of  ninety.  His  wife  lived 
to  be  more  than  eighty  years  of  age.  The  ma- 
ternal grandfather,  Robert  Cofren,  was  born  in 
Maine,  as  were  his  ancestors  for  .several  genera- 
tions, but  the  family  originated  in  Scotland.  He, 
too,  was  a  farmer,  and  met  his  death  by  accident 
when  about  .seventy  years  of  age. 

After  the  death  of  his  mother,  Robert  A. Childs 
went  to  live  with  one  of  her  cousins.  He  made  a 
living  by  working  as  a  fann  hand  at  a  very  mea- 
gre salary,  and  was  occasionally  permitted  to  at- 
tend the  district  schools  in  winter.  When  the 
war  broke  out  he  was  working  on  a  farm  at  $9 
per  month.  Although  only  .sixteen  years  of  age, 
he  entered  the  .service  of  his  country.  Hardly 
had  the  smoke  of  Ft.  Sumter's  guns  cleared 
away,  when  he  joined  Company  B,  Fifteenth  lUi- 
nois  Infantry,  and  sen-ed  for  more  than  four  years, 
or  until  the  clo.se  of  the  war.  In  1861,  his  regi- 
ment was  campaigning  in  Missouri,  and  later  he 
was  under  Grant  at  the  battles  of  Fts.  Henry  and 
Donelson,  the  battle  of  Shiloh,  the  siege  of  Cor- 
inth and  the  battle  of  the  Hatchie.  He  joined  in 
the  Grant  campaign  again.st  "Vicksburg,  going  by 
way  of  the  Mississippi  River,  'Voung's  Point, 
Grand  Gulf,  Raymond,  and  the  Big  Black  River, 
and  then  participated  in  the  siege  and  capture  of 
Vicksburg.  He  aided  in  tlie  campaign  against 
Jackson  under  Sherman,  the  Meridan  campaign 
and  the  Atlanta  campaign,  including  the  battles 
of  Missionary  Ridge,  Big  Shanty  and  Resaca,  and 
the  various  flank  movements  that  resulted  in  the 
capture  of  Atlanta.  He  went  with  Sherman  on 
the  celebrated  march  to  the  sea,  participated  in 
the  campaign  through  the  Carolinas  and  'Virginia, 


and  the  Grand  Review  of  the  victorious  army  in 
Washington,  May  24,  1S65.  Although  so  young, 
no  braver  soldier  wore  the  blue  than  Mr.  Childs, 
and  his  army  record  is  one  of  which  he  may  well 
be  proud. 

After  his  return  from  the  war,  Mr.  Childs  re- 
turned to  Belvidere,  111.,  and  attended  its  public 
.schools  for  two  years.  He  was  ambitions  to  ac- 
quire a  good  education,  and  entered  the  State 
Normal  University,  from  which  he  was  graduated 
in  1870,  after  which  he  was  appointed  Superin- 
tendent of  the  schools  of  Aniboy,  where  he  taught 
from  1870  until  1873.  He  then  went  to  Chicago 
and  began  the  practice  of  law,  for  during  his  lei- 
sure hours  he  had  applied  him.self  diligently  to  its 
study  and  had  been  admitted  to  the  Bar.  He  is 
now  a  practitioner  in  all  the  State  and  Federal 
Courts,  and  has  won  an  enviable  reputation  among 
prominent  attorneys. 

On  the  24th  of  December,  1873,  Mr.  Childs 
wedded  Mi.ss  Mary  E.,  daughter  of  William  and 
Helen  E.  ( Lester)  CofFeen.  Five  children  have 
been  born  unto  them:  Lester  C.  and  William  R. , 
who  are  in  the  preparatory  school  of  Beloit,  Wis. ; 
George  W.,  John  and  Kent.  The  parents  are 
members  of  the  Congregational  Church  of  Hins- 
dale. They  have  a  pleasant  home  here,  which  is 
the  abode  of  hospitalit>- ,  and  here  the>-  have  spent 
their  entire  wedded  life.  Mr.  Childs  also  owns  a 
farm  in  the  town  of  Lyons  and  a  tract  of  land 
near  Hinsdale. 

For  many  years  our  subject  has  been  a  Mason. 
He  also  belongs  to  the  Royal  Arcanum,  Naper 
Post,  G.  A.  R.,  and  the  Royal  League.  In  poli- 
tics, he  is  a  Republican,  and  a  stalwart  advocate 
of  the  principles  of  that  party.  During  his  twenty 
years'  residence  in  Hinsdale,  he  has  served  as 
President  of  its  School  Board  for  .sixteen  years, 
and  has  done  effective  service  in  the  cause  of  edu- 
cation, which  he  believes  to  be  one  of  the  import- 
ant factors  of  good  citizenship.  After  the  re-ap- 
portionment of  the  State  into  Congressional  Dis- 
tricts, as  ba.sed  upon  the  census  of  1880,  DuPage 
County  was  placed  for  the  first  time  in  the  Eighth 
Congressional  District,  consisting  of  DuPage, 
Kendall,  Grundy,  LaSalle  and  Will  Counties. 
The  delegates  from  DuPage  County  first  came  into 


Chari^es  Fox. 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


;Si 


Congressional  Convention  with  the  new  district 
in  June.  1M82.  when  the  nuniinatioii  wa.s  tendered 
to  Mr.  Cliilds.  hut  ilei'lined  for  the  reason  that  he 
was  unable  to  leave  his  professional  work  and 
was  unwilling  to  acxtpt  a  nomination  which  he 
deeraeil  as  accidental.  In  1SS4.  he  w;i>  I'nsiden- 
tial  Klector  for  the  same  district  on  the  Hlaine 
and  Logan  ticket  and  was  elected  by  over  twenty - 
five  thousand  majoritv. 

In  iSy.;.  Mr.  Childs  was  nominated  as  Con- 
gresisman  from  the  Eighth  District,  and  his  merit, 
popularity,  and  fitness  for  the  position  won  him 
election.  It  is  needless  to  say  that  in  the  House 
he  works  for  the  best  interests  of  his  constituents, 
for  those  who  know  him-rand  he  has  a  wide  ac- 
quaintance— know  that  he  is  ever  wide-awake  to 
the  best  interests  of  county.  State  and  couiitr>-. 
He  is  a  lawyer  of  more  than  average  ability,  and 
is  serving  in  his  i)resent  position  of  honor  with 
credit  to  himself  and  satisfaction  to  his  constit- 
uents. 

Mr.  Childs  was  one  of  the  leading  advixntes  of 
the  water-works,  leaving  and  sewerage  systems  of 
Hinsdale,  and  has  l»een  President  of  the  Hins<lale 
Club.  He  is  in  touch  with  every  enteq)ri.se  cal- 
culated to  upbuild  and  benefit  the  community. 
He  was  a  loyal  soldier  to  his  country  in  days  of 
war.  and  is  alike  true  in  times  of  peace.  He  dis- 
likes flatten.-,  but  deser\ed  crmiplinient  is  not  flat- 
ten.-, and  it  is  but  ju.st  that  in  the  record  of  his 
life  which  will  "be  handed  down  !<■  future  genera- 
tions mention  .should  be  made  of  his  merits,  worth 
and  ability,  which  have  won  him  the  enviable  po- 
sition which  he  to-day  occupies. 


4^-^i 


"=] 


EH  ARLES  FOX  is  a  real-estate  dealer  residing 
in  Hinsdale,  and  is  one  of  the  oldest  settlers 
of  this  plaix-.  in  fact,  he  broke  thefir-t  ground 
within  its  borders,  f<jr  the  site  u]K>n  which  the 
town  now  stands  was  formerly  his  father's  farm. 
He  is  theref<jrea  represcntati\e  of  one  <»f  the  hon- 
ored pioneer  families  of  tli^  t-ounty.  Honi  in 
Dorset.    Ik-tmington  County,  Vt..  May  14,  1837, 

«4 


he  is  a  son  of  Marvin  and  Amy  lAmlruN  1  ..a 
who  were  also  natives  of  the  Oreen  Mountain 
State.  The  jiatenial  grniidfatlur,  William  Fox, 
was  also  Ixirn  in  X'erniont,  and  was  one  of  the 
heroes  of  the  Revolution.  He  reare<l  a  family  o( 
ten  children,  and  die<l  on  the  17th  of  Febniar>  , 
1H22,  at  the  age  of  sixty  i>ne  >ears  and  seven 
months.  The  maternal  grandfather,  Linc\>ln  An- 
drns,  s])ent  his  entire  life  in  his  jiative  State.  \er 
mont,  and  followe<l  the  <KX-Hpation  of  farming. 
Mar\in  Fox,  the  father  of  our  subject,  was  also 
an  agriculturist  In  1H52  became  to  Illinois,  lo- 
cating in  Fullersburg.  wliere  he  siK-iH.his remain- 
ing days,  his  death  ocxrurring  June  11,  1889.  at 
the  advance*!  age  of  ninety-four  years.  His  wife 
pa.s.std  away  N'ovemlnrr  28,  1K84.  at  the  age  of 
seventy-nine.  This  worthy  couj)le  had  ten  chil- 
dren, five  sons  and  five  daughters,  of  whom  five 
are  now  living,  as  follows:  Dr.  (ieorge  M.,  Jarvis, 
Charles,  Heman  M.,and  Ellen,  widow  of  John 
Hamble,  and  a  resident  of  Fullersburg. 

In  taking  up  the  history  of  Charles  Fox,  we 
present  to  our  readers  the  life  record  of  one  who 
is  widely  and  favorably  known  in  this  conununity. 
He  came  to  Illinois  with  his  parents  when  a  youth 
of  fifteen.  His  early  education  was  acijuired  in 
the  Green  Mountain  State,  but  he  aftenvard  at- 
tendeti  Wheaton  College.  No  event  of  special 
importance  occurretl  during  his  youth,  which  was 
quietly  pa.ssed  on  his  father's  farm.  After  becom- 
ing a  man.  he  engage<l  in  merchandising  in  Ful- 
lersburg for  ten  years,  and  then  renjovetl  to 
Hinsdale,  in  i.'^72,  where,  in  connection  with  his 
brother  Heman,  he  carrie<l  on  a  store.  Their 
partnership  continued  for  twenty -three  years  un- 
der the  firm  name  of  Fox  Hros. ,  but  in  iSqo 
Charles  sold  his  interest  in  the  business  to  Mr. 
Ditzler,  and  has  since  Ijeen  engaged  in  the  real- 
estate  business. 

On  the  day  on  which  Lincoln  lx.*came  President, 
on  the  4th  <if  March,  1861,  Mr.  Fox  was  luiited 
in  marriage  with  Miss  Het.sy  E.  F'uller,  a  daugh- 
ter of  Iknjamin  and  Olive  A.  (Alwatert  F-uller, 
who  were  natives  of  Hrown  County.  N.  Y,  Three 
children  graced  this  utiion.  but  IVIinar  A.  died 
in  infancy.  William  A.,  who  is  head  Uiok- 
keeper  for  the  .i£tna  Powder  Company  of  Chicago, 


282 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


married  Miss  Lula  Fox,  by  whom  he  has  one  son, 
Paul  X.     Eva  F.  completes  the  family. 

Socially,  Mr.  Fox  is  connected  with  Hinsdale 
Lodge  No.  649,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  and,  in  politics, 
he  is  a  stalwart  Republican.  For  twelve  years  he 
ser\-ed  as  Postmaster  of  FuUersburg.  He  has  a 
good  home  and  other  village  property  in  Hinsdale, 
and  is  recognized  as  one  of  its  leading  citizens, 
who  is  ever  found  in  the  front  ranks  of  any  enter- 
prise calculated  to  promote  the  general  welfare. 
His  business  career,  owing  to  his  well-directed 
efforts  and  perseverance,  has  been  one  of  success. 


l^HJH^ 


IS- 


K\OAH  ERASTUS  GARY,  second  child  and 
\l  eldest  son  of  ErastusGan,-,  a  worthy  pioneer 
\ls  of  DuPage  County,  whose  biography  will 
be  found  elsewhere  in  this  work,  was  born  on  his 
father's  farm  in  Winfield  Township,  this  county, 
on  the  8th  of  Septemlxrr.  1844.  He  was  only  in 
his  fourth  year  when  the  family  came  to  Wheaton. 
and  he  received  his  education  in  the  public  schools 
of  this  city.  He  began  reading  law  at  the  age  of 
sixteen  years  without  the  aid  of  a  preceptor.     In 

1 86 1,  .stirred  by  patriotic  impulses,  he  offered  his 
ser\Mces  as  a  soldier  in  the  I'nion  army,  but  was 
refused  on  account  of  his  youth  and  the  lack  of 
his  father's  consent  to  his  enlistment.    In  August, 

1862,  having  secured  the  paternal  consent,  he 
enlisted  as  a  private  in  Company  D,  One  Hundred 
and  Fifth  Illinois  Infantry,  and  remained  with 
that  body  until  November.  1864.  being  discharged 
as  a  Sergeant.  At  the  first  serious  battle  of  the 
Atlanta  campaign — Resaca — he  was  hit  by  four 
rebel  bullets,  and  lay  for  some  time  within  three 
rods  of  the  rebel  breastworks.  On  account  of  the 
disability  caused  by  these  wounds,  he  was  forced 
to  accept  a  discharge,  thus  sacrificing  his  chance 
of  promotion,  and  the  natural  ambition  of  ever\- 
good  soldier. 

As  soon  as  our  subject  recovered  from  his  inju- 
ries, he  engaged  for  two  years  in  the  sale  of  ma- 
chinery. An  opportunity-  occurring  to  enter  the 
office  of  the  Clerk  of  the  Superior  Court  in  Chi- 
cago, he  accepted,  and    remained  four   and  one- 


half  years,  pursuing  the  study  of  law  in  the 
mean  time.  Entering  the  office  of  his  brother, 
E.  H.  Gary,  in  Chicago,  he  began  practicing, 
and  was  re.gularly  admitted  in  January,  1875. 
For  a  time  he  practiced  in  partnership  with  his 
brother,  under  the  style  of  Gary  Bros.,  and  this 
was  subsequently  changed  to  E.  H.  &  N.  E.  Gary. 
On  the  admission  to  the  firm  of  Hon.  H.  H.  Cody, 
ex-Circuit  Judge  of  DuPage  County,  the  firm  be- 
came Gar}-,  Cody  &  Gan,-. 

In  1890,  N.  E.  Gar\'  retired  from  this  connec- 
tion, and  is  now  located  in  the  Security  Building, 
a  new  and  handsomely  appointed  office  building 
in  Chicago.  While  his  practice  has  been  general, 
he  has  devoted  especial  attention  to  chancery- 
cases,  and  has  met  a  well-merited  success.  He 
is  the  owner  of  over  three  hundred  acres  of  land, 
principally  within  the  limits  of  the  city  of  Whea- 
ton, and  has  improved  property  in  Chicago  and 
South  Chicago.  He  is  active  in  building  up  and 
improving  his  home  city,  being  interested  in  the 
present  plans  for  drainage,  and  is  one  third 
owner  in  the  plant  supplying  the  city  with  elec- 
tric light.  He  was  President  of  the  Town  Coun- 
cil two  years.  Master  in  Chancer>-  of  the  Circuit 
Court  for  twelve  years,  and  is  now  a  member  and 
Clerk  of  the  Board  of  Education.  He  is  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Cook  County  Bar  Ass(jciation  and  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church  of  Wheaton,  in 
which  he  acted  as  Superintendent  of  the  Sabbath- 
school  fur  five  years.  Politically,  he  has  always 
been  a  Republican,  believing  that  his  .chosen 
party  represents  the  best  principles  of  govern- 
ment and  national  progress. 

Mr.  Gar>-  has  been  twice  married,  the  first  time 
in  1865,  his  bride  being  Miss  Ella  M.  Guild, 
daughter  of  Rockwell  Guild,  an  early  resident  of 
this  county.  She  was  born  July  7,  1846,  at  Down- 
er's Grove,  and  died  at  Wheaton,  September  11, 
1870,  aged  twenty-three  years.  She  left  two 
children:  Carleton  N.  and  Ella  Ethelle.  The 
first-bom,  Anna  Frances,  died  in  her  fourth  year. 

On  the  2d  of  June,  1873,  Mr.  Gary-  married 
Caroline  H.  Wheat,  a  native  of  New  York.  Her 
parents,  James  and  Louisa  L.  Wheat,  were  bom, 
respectively,  in  Massachusetts  and  New  York, 
of  old    New    England   ancestn-.     Four  children 


XoAH  E.   Gary. 

(Died  February-  5,  i^.) 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


came  to  l>ks>  the  >iv<.iml  luiioii  i>l  Mr.  dan'. 
The  eldest.  I-'ilith  Louise,  «lic<i  in  infaiioy.  The 
others  are  Anna  I^niise,  Dora  Bernice  and  Ava 
Gract. 

Ella  M.  Guild,  the  first  wife  of  N.iah  K.  Gar>-. 
was  a  descendant  of  the  eighth  generation  of 
John  Guild,  who  settletl  at  Detlhani.  Ma.ss..  in 
1636  (see  biography  of  Israel  Guild).  Through 
five  succeeding  generations  her  ancestors  were 
named  Samuel.  A  ciiniplete  genealogy  of  the 
Guild  familv  may  l>e  found  in  the  Cliica.tjo  Lil>- 
rar>-,  and  other  collections.  Samuel,  the  father  of 
Rockwell  Guild,  was  boni  Octolier  jS.  17.S1.  and 
spent  most  of  his  life  at  Harford.  I'a..  where  he 
died  January  14.  1S47.  His  wife,  Hannah  Cole- 
man. Ixirn  DecemlK-r  5.  1783.  died  Januar\-  3, 
1871.  Mrs.  Gary's  mother  was  Mary  Thatcher. 
Rockwell  Guild,  born  April  2.  1805,  at  Harford, 
Pa.,  died  October  ^.  185s. 


_=3 


^>^[ 


~l.l)Ri:i)  THATCHER,  who  is  engaged  in 
^  :.,'eneral  merchandising  in  Downer's  Grove. 
__  has  long  l>een  iiuml>ere<l  among  the  citizens 
ofDuPage  County,  having  livetl  here  since  the 
days  when  farmers  drove  ox -teams  to  market  in 
Chicago,  and  live<l  in  Itjg  cabins.  He  has  seen  the 
development  of  the  county  almost  from  the  days 
of  its  early  infancx-.  and  has  watched  with  interest 
its  growth  and  j)rogress,  iloiiig  all  in  his  jmwerto 
aid  in  its  development  and  advancement.  A  na- 
tive of  the  Keystone  State,  he  was  born  on  the 
8th  of  March.  1818,  in  Harford,  and  is  a  son  of 
John  and  .Sarah  (Moore)  Thatcher.  The  father 
was  a  native  of  Ma.s.sachusetts.  but  when  a  small 
boy  went  to  Pennsylvania,  where  he  sjienl  the  re- 
mainder of  his  life  as  a  fanner,  his  death  occurring 
at  the  age  of  sixty-seven  years.  His  wife,  who 
was  born  in  New  Jersey,  and  was  of  Irish  extrac- 
tion, pas.sed  away  in  Pennsylvania,  at  the  age  of 
sixty-five.  Their  family  numl>ere<l  six  children, 
four  sons  and  two  daughters,  of  whom  two  are 
now  deceased.  A/or.  the  eldest,  is  now  a  retired 
farmer,  residing  on  the  old  homestead  in  Penn- 
svlvania:  Eldred  is  the  second  in  order  of  birth; 


John  came  to  this  i-ountv    at    .111   earl\    day.   and 
here  died  at  the  age  <»f  sixty:   ICdwin  is  a  retiretl 
farmer,  living  at  Ravenna,  Mich.:  and    Edit  ha  is 
the  wife  of  Luther  Taft,   who  resides  in  Penitsyl 
vania. 

Eldrctl  Thatcher  is  truly  a  self  made  ntan,  for 
since  a  very  early  age  he  has  Iki-ii  de|>endent  ujion 
his  own  resources  When  a  la«l  often  years,  he 
Ixrgan  working  on  a  farm  for  his  lioard  and  clothes, 
as  his  parents  were  quite  jxMir.  He  was  thus  em 
ployed  for  four  years,  when  he  Ix-gan  learning  the 
tanner's  trade,  which  he  foll«we<l  until  he  was 
twenty  years  of  age.  Thinking  that  the  West 
funiished  iK-tter  opjiortunities  for  ambitious  young 
men  than  the  older  .States  of  the  East,  in  1838  he 
made  his  way  to  Illinois,  coming  from  T«>ledo, 
Ohio,  by  team.  He  locatetl  first  in  the  vicinity 
of  Ottawa,  working  for  a  brother  in-law  for  alxiut 
three  years,  after  which  he  i-anie  to  DuPage 
County,  and  with  his  hard-eanietl  s;ivings,  the 
result  of  his  fonner  toil,  purcha.sed  forty  acres  of 
wild  land  in  Downer's  Grove  Township.  He  at 
once  t)egan  the  improvement  and  tlevelopment  of 
the  fann,  upon  which  he  resided  until  1855,  when 
his  wife  thed,  and  he  sold  out. 

In  May,  1S38.  our  subject  had  married  Miss 
Harriet  N.  Thatcher,  a  native  of  Pennsylvania, 
and  she  passed  away  September  29.  1S55,  leaving 
one  child,  Laura  A.,  now  the  wife  of  Charles 
Curtiss,  who.se  sketch  appears  elsewhere  in  this 
volume.  In  Xovemlxr.  1856.  Mr.  Thatcher  was 
again  married,  his  .second  union  l>eing  with  Mi.ss 
Charlotta  Smith,  and  unto  them  have  been  boni 
three  children:  John,  who  follows  farming  in  Illi- 
nois: Helen,  wifeof  George  Hateman:  and  Harvey, 
a  railway  employe.  The  mother  of  the  family 
dietl  at  the  age  of  fifty -six  years. 

I'jxm  the  death  of  his  first  wife.  Mr.  Thatcher 
left  the  farm  and  came  to  Downer's  Grove,  where 
he  has  since  engaged  in  general  merchandising. 
He  carries  a  full  and  complete  line  of  goods,  and 
as  a  result  of  his  well-selected  sUxrk,  his  fair  and 
honest  dealings,  and  his  earnest  desire  to  please 
his  patrons,  he  has  ever  rei'eived  a  lilx-ral  patron- 
age. In  ix»litics,  he  is  a  supi»rter  of  Republican 
princiijles.  Hescr\'ed  as  Postmaster  for  a  iiumlxT 
of  years  in  an  early  day,  and  on  the  organization 


284 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


of  Downer's  Grove  served  as  a  member  of  its  first 
Town  Board.  He  has  always  manifested  a  com- 
mendable interest  in  the  growth  and  npbuilding  of 
his  county,  which  has  recognized  in  him  a  valued 
citizen  as  well  as  an  honored  pioneer. 

IILLIAM  S.  CARPENTER,  who  is  carrj-- 
iug  on  a  fine  drug  business  in  Downer's 
Grove,  was  born  in  Warrenville,  on  the 
19th  of  November,  1854,  and  is  a  son  of  George 
and  Elizabeth  Potter.  His  parents  were  in  quite 
linrited  circumstances,  and  when  he  was  five  years 
of  age  he  went  to  live  with  his  uncle,  Dr.  Potter, 
of  Chicago.  When  a  lad  of  six  summers  he  came 
to  the  home  of  Henry  Carpenter,  of  this  place,  and 
took  the  name  of  his  adopted  father.  Mr.  Car- 
penter is  one  of  the  honored  pioneers  of  the  county , 
and  owned  and  operated  a  farm  near  Downer's 
Grove,  but  lived  in  the  town.  He  gave  to  our 
subject  a  comfortable  home  and  proved  indeed  a 
benefactor  to  him. 

William  S.  Carpenter  attended  the  common 
schools  until  .sixteen  years  of  age,  and  in  the  mean 
time,  in  his  evenings  and  lei.sure  hours,  he  had 
learned  telegraphy,  .so  at  the  age  of  sixteen  he 
took  charge  of  the  telegraph  office  in  Naperville, 
111.,  where  he  remained  for  about  a  year.  He 
then  .served  as  operator  at  different  places  for  two 
years,  after  which  he  was  employed  as  salesman 
in  a  general  store  for  one  year.  The  two  suc- 
ceeding years  of  his  life  were  passed  as  clerk  in  a 
drug  store,  when  he  entered  the  employ  of  the 
railroad  company,  serving  in  the  car  accountant's 
office  until  the  fall  of  1876,  when,  with  the  capital 
he  had  acquired  through  industry  and  persever- 
ance, he  opened  a  drug  store,  which  he  conducted 
successfully  until  1881.  In  that  year  he  sold  out 
and  removed  to  Chicago,  where  he  engaged  in 
the  retail  notion  business  for  about  a  year.  He 
then  sold  out  and  became  manager  of  the  Central 
Telephone  Exchange  for  a  short  time.  Subse- 
quently he  was  enrployed  in  a  telegraph  office  in 
Chicago,  and  in  February,  1884,  he  returned  to 
Downer's  Grove,  purchasing  the  drug  stock  which 


he  had  sold  in  1881.     For  ten   years  he  has  now 
continuously  carried  on  business  along  this  line. 

On  the  20th  of  April,  1876,  Mr.  Carpenter  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Martha  M.  Hobart, 
daughter  of  Rev.  I.  N.  and  Rhoda  M.  (Eddy) 
Hobart.  The  father  was  a  Baptist  minister,  and 
was  serving  as  pastor  of  the  church  at  this  place 
at  the  time  of  his  death.  Mrs.  Hobart  was  the 
daughter  of  Capt.  Samuel  Eddy,  of  Massachu- 
setts. Mr.  and  Mrs.  Carpenter  have  one  child, 
Nellie,  who  is  now  about  ten  years  of  age. 

Mr.  Carpenter  exercises  his  right  of  franchise 
in  support  of  the  Republican  party.  He  has  never 
been  an  office-seeker,  in  fact  would  never  accept 
political  honors.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Masonic 
lodge,  but  is  not  a  member  of  any  religious  denomi- 
nation, while  Mrs.  Carpenter  holds  membership 
with  the  Baptist  Church.  He  now  owns  one  of 
the  leading  drug  stores  of  Downer's  Grove.  That 
which  he  has  represents  his  own  earnings,  for  he 
started  out  in  life  empty-handed,  with  nothing  to 
depend  upon  save  his  own  resources.  He  may 
truly  be  called  a  self-made  man,  and  as  the  result 
of  his  bu.sy  and  useful  life  he  has  become  a  sub- 
stantial citizen. 


EAPT.  THEODORE  S.  ROGERS  is  one  of 
the  leading  citizens  of  Downer's  Grove,  and 
an  honored  veteran  of  the  late  war,  who 
wore  the  blue  in  defense  of  the  Union,  and  vali- 
antly followed  the  Old  Flag  in  many  of  the  most 
hotly  contested  battles  of  that  struggle,  which 
not  only  did  away  with  .slavery,  but  made  the 
Union  more  indissoluble  than  before.  The  Cap- 
tain was  born  in  Morristown,  St.  Lawrence 
County,  N.  Y.,  August  30,  1831.  The  family  is 
of  English  lineage.  The  father,  Joseph  I.  Rog- 
ers, was  a  native  of  Rhode  Island.  Removing  to 
the  Empire  State,  he  there  married  Caroline 
Smith,  who  was  born  in  New  York,  and  was  also 
of  English  extraction.  Her  father  was  a  well- 
educated  man,  and  kept  a  hotel  in  New  York  for 
a  number  of  >'ears.  In  1844  Mr.  Rogers  came 
with  his  family  to  Illinois,  making  the  journey 


Capt.  T.  S    Rogers 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


by  water  to  Chicago,  wliere  he  hiretl  a  team  witli 
which  he  came  to  DuPage  County.  Here  he 
purchased  a  farm,  upon  which  he  spent  his  re- 
maining days.  He  was  a  stanch  RepuMican, 
and  took  quite  an  active  part  in  local  politics. 
His  death  occurred  in  this  county,  at  the  age  of 
sixty-two  years.  He  was  the  only  son  of  the 
family  who  lived  to  any  age.  but  has  a  .sister, 
Mrs.  Julia  Aldrich.  who  is  now  living  in  this 
county,  at  the  advanced  age  of  ninety-five  years. 
The  mother  of  our  subject  still  sur\"ives  her  hus- 
band, and  although  now  in  her  eighty-third  year, 
her  mental  and  physical  faculties  are  well  pre- 
served. 

The  Rogers  family  numbered  six  children, 
three  sons  and  three  daughters,  but  Ella  is  now 
deceased.  The  others  are  Mar>-  L..  widow  of 
Chauncy  Harmon,  and  a  resident  of  Downers 
Grove:  Theodore  S.:  Joseph  W..  a  prosperous 
merchant  of  this  place:  Francis  A.,  a  successful 
farmer  of  Downer's  Grove  Township:  and  Sarah, 
wife  of  John  A.  Kinley.  of  Aurora.  111. 

Capt.  Rogers  sjient  the  first  thirteen  >ears  of 
his  life  in  the  State  of  his  nativity,  and  in  1844 
came  with  his  parents  to  Illinois.  He  remained 
at  home  until  twenty  years  of  age,  when  he  be- 
gan teaching  school  in  this  county.  For  twelve 
winters  he  followed  that  profession,  while  in  the 
summer  months  his  labors  were  devoted  to  work 
upon  the  home  farm.  He  had  attended  the  com- 
mon schools,  and  was  graduated  from  the  Down- 
er s  Grove  High  School.  On  the  19th  of  July, 
1862,  prompted  by  patriotic  impulses,  he  re- 
sjKjnded  to  the  country's  call  for  troops,  and  en- 
listed as  a  private  of  the  One  Hundred  and  Fifth 
Illinois  Infantn.'.  On  the  organization  of  Com- 
pany B,  he  was  elected  Captain.  The  regiment 
went  into  camp  at  Dixon,  and  was  mustered  into 
the  I'nited  States  service  September  2,  1862.  and 
sent  thence  to  Louisville  and  Frankfort.  Ky.,  en- 
gaging in  the  skinnish  at  the  latter  place.  Capt. 
Rogers  t<x)k  part  in  the  battles  of  Bowling  Green, 
Taylor's  Ridge.  Smoke  Creek  Gap.  and  at  the 
battle  of  Resaca  had  charge  of  the  skirmish  line 
in  front  of  the  a.s.saulters.  He  led  his  men  at 
Calhoun,  Ca.s.svillc,  the  advance  on  Dallas.  New 
Hope    Church.     Kenesaw     Mountain.     Lookout 


Miiuntaiii.  tiolgotha.  the  a.s,sault  on  Kt-ne.saw,  the 
battle  of  Marietta.  Chattaho<xrhec  River.  Peach 
Tree  Creek,  the  battle  of  Atlanta,  and  the  siege 
of  that  city.  On  the  30th  of  September.  1864. 
he  resigned  and  was  honorably  discharged  from 
the  ser\ice.  He  participated  in  many  skinnishes 
and  battles,  and  his  war  record  is  one  of  which  he 
may  well  be  proud. 

On  the  13th  of  December.  1855.  the  Captain 
married  Miss  Helen  M..  a  daughter  of  Dexter 
and  Nancy  iCaprom  Stanley,  who  were  among 
the  early  settlers  of  DuPage  County.  She  was 
bom  in  Pennsylvania.  February  6.  1S33.  but 
since  her  second  year  has  made  her  home  in  this 
county.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Rogers  had  two  children. 
Bertha  and  Glen,  but  both  died  in  infancy. 

The  Captain  was  elected  Sheriff  of  DuPage 
County  in  i860,  but  on  entering  the  ser\ice  of 
his  country  he  left  reliable  deputies  to  perform 
the  duties  of  that  office.  He  has  sen-ed  as  Super- 
visor. Township  Clerk  and  Collector.  He  was  a 
member  of  the  Board  of  Town  Trustees  for  four- 
teen years,  and.  with  the  exception  of  one  year, 
was  President  during  that  entire  time.  He  cast 
his  firsT  Presidential  vote  for  Scott,  but  it  is  need- 
less to  say  that  he  is  now  a  stanch  Republican, 
supporting  that  party  which  was  formed  to  pre- 
vent the  further  extension  of  slavery.  In  1892 
he  was  appointed  by  Gov.  Filer  on  the  Board  of 
Equalization  to  fill  the  vacancy  caused  by  the 
death  of  Henr>-  L.  Bush.  He  is  a  prominent 
Grand  Army  man.  and  with  the  exception  of  one 
year  has  been  Commander  of  Naper  Post  No. 
468.  G.  A.  R..  of  Downers  Grove,  since  its  or- 
ganization. At  that  time  he  refused  to  have  the 
office,  but,  his  comrades  insi.sting  upon  his  ac- 
cepting the  position  again,  he  is  now  the  incura- 
Ixrnt.  He  has  servetl  as  Superintendent  of  the 
Agricultural  Society  of  the  county  for  a  numl>er 
of  years,  and  is  a  member  of  the  Masonic  frater- 
nity of  Downer's  Grove,  and  the  Royal  Arcanum 
of  Hinsdale.  He  also  belongs  to  the  Loyal 
Legion  of  Illinois,  the  last  two  being  societies  of 
the  Army  of  the  Cunil)erland  and  the  Army  of  the 
Tennes.see. 

Af\er  his  return  from  the  war.  the  Captain  en- 
gaged  in  teaching  school  for  a  year,  then  spent 


286 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


one  year  in  the  insurance  business,  and  in  July, 
1866,  embarked  in  the  market  and  provision  bus- 
iness in  Chicago.  In  187 1,  in  the  great  fire,  he 
was  burned  out,  and  again  in  1874,  but  with 
characteristic  energy  he  rebuilt,  retrieved  his 
losses,  and  has  since  successfully  carried  on  busi- 
ness. He  now  has  one  of  the  finest  markets  in 
Chicago,  located  at  the  corner  of  Wabash  Ave- 
nue and  Eighteenth  Street.  His  possessions  have 
all  been  acquired  through  his  own  earnings,  and 
he  has  gained  a  handsome  competence,  but  in- 
stead of  using  it  all  for  selfi.sh  ends,  he  gives  lib- 
erally to  charitable  and  benevolent  work.  The 
needy  are  never  turned  from  his  door  empty- 
handed,  and  probabl\-  no  man  has  contributed  so 
much  to  the  poor  of  Downer's  Grove  as  has 
Capt.  Rogers.  He  has  a  beautiful  home  here 
and  several  lots  and  business  houses.  Through- 
out DuPage  and  Cook  Counties  he  has  a  host  of 
friends,  and  is  held  in  the  highest -regard  by  all 
with  whom  he  has  been  brought  in  contact. 


-S) 


^A^ 


c=_ 


OAMUELD.  WELDON  was  born  in  Acush- 
Nk  net,  Bri-stol  County,  Ma,ss.,  July  15,  1859. 
Q)  His  great-grandfather  lived  in  the  same  vil- 
lage, and  was  a  farmer  and  .seaman.  George 
Weldon,  grandfather  of  Samuel,  lived  on  a  farm 
there,  in  the  house  where  Samuel  was  born.  He 
died  about  1873,  and  his  wife,  Susan,  survived 
until  1885,  reaching  the  age  of  seventy -.six. 
Amos,  son  of  George  and  Su.san  Weldon,  was  a 
cabinet-maker.  He  built  a  house  near  his  father's 
and  died  before  reaching  the  age  of  forty  j'ears, 
in  1863.  His  wife,  Bathsheba,  daughter  of  Enoch 
Staples,  still  resides  there.  The  Weldon  family 
is  a  very  old  one  at  Acushnet,  and  has  bestowed 
many  local  names,  such  as  "Weldon's  Mills" 
(the  site  of  a  cotton  factory  in  which  George 
Weldon  was  interested),  "Weldon's  Corners," 
and  others  in  the  locality.  The  Staples  family 
was  equally  prominent  about  Taunton. 

Having  acquired  the  builder's  trade  under  the 
instruction  of  an  uncle,  S.  D.  Weldon  became  a 
re.sideiit  of  Wheaton  in  1884.    He  has  constructed 


many  of  the  finest  residences  in  the  city,  the  total 
exceeding  sixty.  In  1892,  he  erected  twenty- 
two  houses.  Among  the  samples  of  his  handi- 
work may  be  mentioned  the  residences  of  Braman 
Loveless,  C.  N.  Gary,  John  Gettelson,  D.  A. 
Straw  and  M.  Seeker.  In  1886,  Mr.  Weldon 
married  Miss  May  Bixby,  and  they  have  three 
bright  children,  named  Edmund,  Bessie  and 
Belle. 


]-^4^ 


[= 


H 


W.  F.  BARTELLS,  M.  D.,  is  a  prominent 
physician  of  Bensenville,  and  his  practice 
extends  over  a  large  radius,  for  he  has  a  high 
reputation,  which  he  well  merits  by  his  skill  and 
ability.  He  is  still  a  young  man,  and,  arguing 
from  his  record  of  the  past,  he  will  continue  to 
work  his  way  upward  in  his  chosen  profession. 

The  Doctor  was  born  in  Chicago  on  the  6th  of 
April,  1863,  and  is  a  son  of  Dr.  Fred  and  Engel 
(Benson)  Bartells.  The  parents  were  both  na- 
tives of  Germany,  and  in  early  life  came  to  Amer- 
ica. The  paternal  grandfather  of  our  subject, 
Fred  Bartells,  Sr. ,  brought  his  family  to  this 
country  and  became  the  second  settler  in  Shaum- 
burgh,Ill.  The  family  has  long  been  identified  with 
the  history  of  the  northern  portion  of  this  State. 
Our  subject  is  the  second  of  three  children.  His 
sister  is  the  wife  of  Fred  Bu.s,se,  a  resident  of  Elk 
Grove  Township,  Cook  County,  and  his  brother 
Fred  is  deceased. 

Dr.  Bartells  was  reared  principally  in  the  city 
of  his  nativity.  He  completed  his  literary  course 
of  study  by  attending  the  Ottawa  High  School, 
and  then,  having  determined  to  enter  upon  the 
practice  of  medicine,  he  became  a  student  in  Rush 
Medical  College,  of  Chicago,  from  which  institu- 
tion he  was  graduated  in  the  Class  of  '85,  and  re- 
ceived a  certificate  of  honor.  He  immediately 
thereafter  located  in  Bensenville,  where  he  opened 
an  office  and  has  since  engaged  in  practice.  In 
order  to  further  perfect  himself  in  his  studies,  in 
i8qi  he  attended  the  Koniglichen  Friedrich  Wil- 
helms  University,  of  Berlin,  Germany. 

Dr.  Bartells  was  married  in  1887,  the  lady  of  his 
choice  being  Miss  Edna  Dierking,  a  native  of  Cook 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


287 


County.  Three  children  graced  this  union.  Kdna, 
and  Fred  and  Henr>-,  both  deceased.  The  Doctor 
is  a  member  of  the  Fox  River  \'alley  Medical  So- 
ciety, and  attending  physician  of  the  Evangelical 
Lutheran  School-teachers'  Seminary  at  Addi.son, 
and  is  now  enjoying  a  fine  practice.  He  is  a  close 
student  of  his  profession  and.  fitted  by  thorough 
preparation  for  his  chosen  work,  he  has  during 
the  years  of  his  residence  here  not  only  gained 
the  confidence  and  good- will  of  all  with  whom  he 
has  been  brought  in  contact,  but  has  also  won  a 
reputation  which  might  well  be  envied  b>-  many 
an  older  practitioner.  As  a  citizen  he  is  enter- 
prising and  progressive,  and  the  interests  which 
are  calculated  to  upbuild  the  community  receive 
his  support  and  co-operation.  At  this  writing 
the  Doctor  has  in  process  of  erection  what  will 
be  one  of  the  finest  residences  in  Bensenville.  It 
is  built  in  a  modem  st\'le  of  architecture,  is  sup- 
plied with  gas  and  electric  light,  hot  and  cold  wa- 
ter, bell  burglar-alarms,  and  is  heated  by  hot 
water.  It  was  all  planned  by  the  Doctor.andis  a 
model  home,  of  which  he  may  be  justly  proud. 


(=~ 


IIXSLOW  CHURCHILL,  a  retired  farmer 
now  living  in  Downer's  Grove,  is  one  of 
the  self-made  men  of  this  community,  who 
by  his  own  efforts  has  risen  from  a  humble  posi- 
tion in  life  to  one  of  affluence.  The  record  of  his 
career,  which  we  feel  assured  will  prove  of  inter- 
est to  many  of  our  readers,  is  as  follows:  A  na- 
tive of  the  Empire  State,  he  was  bom  June  13, 
1813,  in  Onondaga  County,  and  is  one  of  a  fam- 
ily of  twelve  children,  numbering  five  sons  and 
seven  daughters,  whose  parents  were  Winslow  and 
Mercey  (Dodge)  Churchill.  The  former  was  a 
native  of  \'ermont.  and  in  his  earlier  years  fol- 
lowed the  mason's  trade,  but  later  in  life  became 
a  farmer.  The  members  of  the  family  who  are 
now  living  are:  Christina,  wife  of  James  Chris- 
tian, who  makes  her  home  near  Prospect  Park,  in 
her  ninety-second  year;  Betsy,  who  is  living  in 
Cook  County,  in  her  eighty-sixth  year;  Winslow, 
who  is  the  next  younger;  and  Bradford,  a  farmer 
li%'ing  near  Lombard. 


Mr.  Churchill  of  this  sketch  was  reared  to 
manhood  in  the  usual  manner  of  famier  lads,  and 
in  his  youth  received  very  limited  school  privi- 
leges. In  1834  he  came  with  his  father  to  Du- 
Page  County,  the  family  locating  near  Lombard  on 
a  claim  of  between  two  and  three  hundred  acres, 
on  which  a  log  cabin  was  built.  For  about  three 
years  our  subject  continued  at  home  and  then  en- 
tered a  claim  of  his  own  from  the  Government  of 
one  hundred  and  sixty  acres,  purchasing  the  same 
when  the  land  came  into  market.  It  was  in  its 
primitive  condition,  but  with  characteristic  energy 
he  began  to  clear  and  improve  it,  and  there  con- 
tinued his  fanning  operations  until  1868.  In 
that  year  he  removed  to  Lisle  Township,  where 
he  made  his  home  until  1879,  when  he  came  to 
Downer's  Grove.  Since  that  time  he  has  lived 
retired. 

Mr.  Churchill  made  the  trip  westward  on  a 
sailing-vessel  on  the  Great  Lakes,  reaching  Chi- 
cago only  after  five  weeks  from  the  time  when  he 
left  Buffalo.  Chicago  was  his  nearest  trading- 
post,  and  to  that  place  he  hauled  his  grain  and 
other  farm  products.  There  was  only  one  log 
cabin  in  Lombard,  and  much  of  the  land  of  the 
county  was  still  in  the  possession  of  the  Govern- 
ment. Mr.  Churchill  truly  deserves  to  be  num- 
bered among  the  pioneer  settlers,  and  also  among 
the  founders  of  the  county,  for  he  has  ever  borne 
his  part  in  the  work  of  public  improvement  and 
development. 

Mr.  Churchill  has  been  three  times  married. 
He  first  married  Juliet  Morton,  and  unto  them 
were  bora  the  following  children:  OUie;  Orson, 
deceased;  Lucinda;  E.sther  and  Melinda,  both  of 
whom  are  deceased;  Harriet  and  Laura.  The 
mother  of  this  family  died  May  29,  1853,  ^nd  on 
the  10th  of  November,  1853,  Mr.  Churchill  mar- 
ried Sarah  A.  Nichols,  by  whom  he  had  three  sons: 
Henrj-,  James  and'  Isaac.  The  second  wife  died 
October  J5,  1S58,  and  he  was  married  to  Miss 
Mariette  Willard  on  Christmas  following.  The 
children  of  this  marriage,  four  in  number,  are 
Orrila  and  Ro/ella.  twins;  and  Anna  H.  and 
Louisa.  The  mother's  death  occurred  on  the  ist 
of  November,  1892. 

Mr.  Churchill  cast  his  first  vote  for  John   Cal- 


288 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


houn,  and  was  a  supporter  of  the  Whig  party  un- 
til its  dissolution,  when  he  joined  the  ranks  of  the 
new  Republican  party,  and  has  since  upheld  its 
banner.  His  time  and  energies  throughout  life 
have  been  devoted  to  farm  work,  and  through 
industrs-,  perseverance  and  good  management  his 
career  has  been  a  successful  one  and  he  has  ac- 
cumulated a  comfortable  competence. 


1^+^- 


r:=' 


""DWARD  WOOTTOX,  one  of  the  leading 
^  stock-dealers  of  Downer's  Grove,  does  an  ex- 
^  tensive  business  in  this  line,  furnishing  hotels 
and  club  houses  in  Chicago,  and  also  leading 
restaurants  and  railroad  dining-cars  with  spring 
lambs  and  roasting  pigs.  He  has  built  up  an 
excellent  trade  in  this  line,  having  gained  a  repu- 
tation for  furnishing  the  best  meats  that  can  be 
obtained. 

Mr.  Wootton  is  a  native  of  Shropshire,  Eng- 
land. He  was  born  June  9,  1849,  and  is  the 
eldest  in  a  family  of  eleven  children,  whose  par- 
ents, Herbert  and  Elizabeth  (Davis)  Wootton, 
were  also  born  in  the  same  locality  as  our  subject, 
and  are  still  residing  in  that  neighborhood.  The 
father  is  a  retired  butcher  and  cattle-dealer.  Ed- 
ward remained  under  the  parental  roof  until  four- 
teen years  of  age,  and  then  left  home,  going  to 
Kidderminster  to  learn  the  tea  and  coffee  business 
in  a  wholesale  house,  where  he  remained  until 
about  twenty  years  of  age.  On  the  expiration  of 
that  period,  he  went  to  Birmingham,  and  traveled 
for  a  wholesale  grocer\-  for  a  \ear.  We  next  find 
him  in  Shrewsburj-,  where  he  was  sent  by  the 
grocery  as  manager  of  a  branch  store  at  that  place. 
Later,  he  went  to  Cradley  Heath,  where  he  en- 
gaged in  the  grocery  business  for  himself  for 
about  t^vo  years. 

At  length  Mr.  Wootton  determined  to  make  his 
home  in  America,  and  in  1S72  crossed  the  Atlan- 
tic, locating  first  in  Chicago,  where  he  accepted  a 
position  as  a  traveling  salesman,  with  a  tea  house. 
Eight  months  later  he  embarked  in  the  tea  and 
coffee  business  for  himself  in  that  place.  In  1880, 
we  find  him  in  DuPage  County,  where  he  rented 


a  few  acres  of  land,  and  began  the  business  which 
he  to-day  follows.  He  has  built  up  an  exten-sive 
trade,  and  now  has  a  large  paying  business, 
which  is  the  just  reward  of  his  own  well-directed 
efforts.  He  is  also  the  owner  of  a  good  farm, 
one  mile  from  the  village  of  Downer's  Grove. 

On  the  26th  of  October,  1892,  Mr.  Wootton 
was  united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Alice  E.  Steere, 
a  most  estimable  lady,  of  Downer's  Grove.  So- 
cially, he  is  a  member  of  the  Masonic  fraternity, 
the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America,  and  the  An- 
cient Order  of  United  Workmen.  He  belongs  to 
the  Methodist  Church,  and  his  wife  holds  mem- 
bership with  the  Bapti.st  Church.  They  have  a 
beautiful  home  in  Downer's  Grove,  which  is  sup- 
plied with  all  the  comforts  and  many  of  the  lux- 
uries of  life,  and  which  is  the  abode  of  hospitality. 
Mr.  \\'ootton  is  a  man  of  much  push  and  enter- 
prise. He  possesses  ambition  tempered  b\'  prac- 
tical ideas,  and,  although  he  started  out  in  life  a 
poor  boy,  he  is  now  one  of  the  substantial  citizens 
of  the  community.  It  was  probably  very  fortu- 
nate that  he  came  to  America,  for  here  he  has 
prospered . 


^-^ 


t^" 


IT  RASTUS  GARY,  the  first  settler  of  Winfield 
1^  Township,  and  an  early  resident  of  Whea- 
I  ton,  was  one  of  the  most  prominent  citizens 
of  DuPage  County  throughout  his  residence  here. 
He  died,  universally  regretted,  at  the  advanced 
age  of  eighty -two  years,  on  the  12th  of  June, 
1888.  His  descent  is  traced  through  a  long  line 
of  New  England  ancestry,  the  fir.st  being  Arthur 
Gar\-,  who  came  from  Lsleborough  ( now  a  part 
of  the  city  of  London,  England)  in  1630,  and  set- 
tled at  Roxbury,  Mass.,  being  one  of  the  proprie- 
tors of  that  town.  He  was  an  active  churchman 
and  a  supporter  of  subscription  schools.  He  had 
three  sons,  and  the  youngest  of  these,  Nathaniel, 
had  ten  children.  Among  the  younger  of  these 
was  Samuel,  who,  at  the  age  of  sixteen  years, 
removed  to  Woodstock,  Conn.,  and  soon  after  to 
Pomfret,  the  same  State.    He  became  a  sur\-eyor, 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL    RECORD. 


389 


and  was  a  prominent  citizen  of  Putnam,  wliich 
was  set  off  from  Pomfret.  He  bought  and  sold 
land  extensively  in  Winilham  County,  and  was  a 
man  of  affairs.  His  sou  Josiali  had  fourteen  chil- 
dren, and  was  a  quiet  man.  He  ser\ed.  with 
two  of  his  sons,  in  the  Revolutionary  army.  His 
voungest  st>n.  William,  also  served  for  a  sliort 
time,  though  his  youth  and  frail  health  prevented 
long  or  arduous  service.  The  la.st-nametl  died  in 
Putnam,  at  the  early  age  of  fifty  one  years,  in 
181 7.  He  was  a  school  teacher  and  fanner.  Of 
his  seven  children,  six  grew  up.  Erastus.  whose 
name  heads  this  article,  Ixfing  the  third.  All 
became  residents  of  DuPage  County,  and  are  now 
deceased.  Following  are  their  names  in  order  of 
birth:  Laura,  Mrs.  Stoughton  Kickard:  Charles; 
Erastus:  Harriet,  wife  of  Hezekiah  Holt:  Jude  P. 
and  Orinda. 

William  Gar>"s  wife,  Lucy,  was  a  daughter  of 
Col.  Samuel  Perin.  an  ex-English  soldier,  who 
was  loyal  to  the  Colonial  cau.se  during  the  Rev- 
olutionan.'  War.  Down  to  this  time,  the  Gary 
family  had  unanimously  sustained  the  Congrega- 
tional Church,  but  Lucy  Gary  early  became  affil- 
iated with  the  Melhodi.st  Episcopal  organization, 
and  under  her  influence  her  son  Erastus  joined 
that  Ixxly  at  the  age  of  six  years,  adhering  con- 
.si.siently  thereto  throughout  his  long  life. 

Erastus  Gary,  bom  April  5.  1806,  in  Putnam, 
Conn.,  i>as.sed  his  early  years  on  the  home  farm, 
and  was  robbed  of  a  father's  care  at  the  age  of 
eleven  years.  His  mother  was  a  woman  of  char- 
acter and  intellect,  and  his  useful  life  reflected 
her  care  and  training.  In  his  early  manhood  he 
taught  school,  as  have  so  many  New  England 
youths,  to  make  a  start  in  life. 

In  the  autumn  of  1S31  Mr.  Gary,  accompanied 
by  his  bn>ther  and  sister,  Jude  and  Orinda  Gary, 
visite<l  Illinois,  and  selected  their  future  home 
nc-ar  Warrenville,  in  what  is  now  Winfjcld 
TowiLship,  DuPagc  County.  The  others  went  to 
Michigan  to  spend  the  winter,  but  Era.stus  re- 
mained in  what  is  known  to  old  settlers  as  "the 
big  woods,"  splitting  raiLs  and  getting  out  timber 
for  their  hou.sc.  At  that  time  there  were  settlers 
at  Naperv'ille,  and  '.e  made  regular  trij>s  to  that 
point  to  get  his  bread,  and  such  other  supplies  as 


sufficed  for  the  hardy  pioneer.  In  the  spring,  on 
account  of  a  threatened  Indian  invasion,  he  went 
to  Chicago  and  drille<l  for  a  short  witli  the  forces 
there,  prejiaring  to  reix.-!  the  attacks  of  the  red 
men.  After  the  arrival  of  Gen.  Scott  at  Ft. 
Dearlxirn  with  regular  tr<:K)j>s.  he  went  to  Michi- 
gan, where  he  engagetl  in  teaching  for  a  year. 
In  the  spring  of  1833,  the  Black  Hawk  War  hav- 
ing ende<l.  he  returnetl  with  his  brother  atid  sis- 
ter to  their  claim  in  Winfield,  and  they  put  up  a 
double  log  house,  in  which  the>'  dwelt  for  some 
time. 

In  1848  Erastus  and  Jude  divided  their  pos- 
sessions, and  the  former  took  the  prairie  lands,  a 
part  of  which  was  in  the  present  city  of  Whea- 
ton,  and  removed  thither  to  reside.  His  resi- 
dence is  still  standing  on  the  west  end  of  Wesley 
Street.  He  amtinued  fanning  until  1864.  when 
he  rented  his  land  and  moved  to  a  new  residence 
on  Hale  Street.  He  ser\-ed  as  Supervisor,  and 
was  Justice  of  the  Peace  for  nearly  a  quarter  of  a 
century.  He  was  also  President  of  the  Town 
Council  ( the  city  not  being  then  incorporated  1 , 
and  was  a  member  of  the  Board  which  built  the 
present  Wheaton  schoolhouse.  He  was  one  of 
the  organizers  of  the  first  Methodist  Church  in 
Winfield,  at  Gary's  Mills,  which  was  the  name 
given  to  the  location  of  a  sawmill  operaletl  by 
his  brothers  and  himself  In  early  life  he  was  a 
Democrat,  and  joined  the  Republican  party  on  its 
organization  in  1856. 

In  1 84 1  Mr.  Gary  married  Miss  Susan  Abiah 
Vallette,  a  daughter  of  Jeremiah  and  Margaret 
(  Mott  I  \'allette,  who  came  from  Stockbridge, 
Mass.,  to  this  county  at  an  early  day.  Mrs. 
Gary's  ancestr>-  was  of  French  origin  (.see 
sketch  of  J.  G.  Vallette  1,  and  was  early  implanted 
in  New  England.  She  died  in  1834,  at  the  age  of 
fifly-five  years.  Of  the  .seven  children  of  Era.stus 
and  Susan  A.  Gary,  the  first,  Francrs,  and  the 
sixth,  Irwin  Jonathan,  died  in  infancy,  and  the 
last.  Susan  Abby.  at  nine  years  of  age.  For 
the  .second  and  third  see  sketches  elsewhere. 
Ella  H.,  the  fourth,  is  the  wife  of  John  Ellis,  a 
MetlKniist  clergyman,  residing  at  present  in 
Evanston,  111.  Jeremiah  Olin  is  a  Methodist 
preacher   now    located    at    Chain  of   Rocks,  Mo. 


290 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


Mr.  Gary  was  active  in  developing  hi.s  town, 
cit}'  and  county,  and  was  a  successful  man.  His 
earthly  possessions,  and  good  name  as  well,  are 
left  in  the  keeping  of  worthy  descendants. 


_^]. 


-^} 


^+^! 


[^_ 


(^~ 


0RLAND  P.  BASSETT,  of  the  Pictorial  Print- 
ing House,  of  Chicago,  and  the  owner  of  large 
greenhouses  in  Hinsdale,  where  he  makes 
his  home,  was  born  March  31,  1835,  inTowanda, 
Pa.  His  father,  John  W.  Bassett,  was  a  wheel- 
wright of  the  Keystone  State,  and  in  1872  he  came 
to  Illinois,  spending  his  last  days  in  Chicago  at 
the  home  of  his  son,  where  he  died  at  the  age  of 
eighty-four  years.  He  was  a  member  of  the  Pres- 
byterian Church.  His  wife  bore  the  maiden  name 
of  Angeline  Crooker,  and  passed  away  several 
years  previous  to  the  death  of  her  husband.  Their 
family  numbered  nine  children,  of  whom  four  are 
yet  living:   Henry,  John,  Orland  and  Chauncy. 

Mr.  Bassett  whose  name  heads  this  record  was 
reared  in  his  native  State,  and  remained  with  his 
parents  until  he  had  attained  his  majority.  The 
greater  part  of  his  education  was  acquired  in  a 
printing-office.  In  1854  he  began  the  printing 
business,  which  he  has  followed  up  to  the  present 
time,  and  step  by  step  he  has  worked  his  way  up- 
ward until  he  is  now  President  of  the  Pictorial 
Printing  Company,  of  Chicago.  He  owned  the 
entire  bu.sine.ss  until  about  four  years  ago.  when 
he  sold  the  controlling  interest.  It  was  in  March, 
1857,  that  he  came  to  the  West  and  located  in 
Sycamore,  111.,  where  he  published  a  paper,  the 
Sycamore  True  Republican,  for  nine  years.  He 
then  sold  out  and  removed  to  Chicago,  where  he 
carried  on  a  job  printing-office  until  1874,  when 
he  bought  out  the  establishment  of  the  Pictorial 
Printing  Company,  as  before  stated. 

On  the  5th  of  April,  1858,  Mr.  Bassett  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Betsey  M.  Shelton. 
One  child  has  been  born  to  them,  Kate  B.,  wife 
of  Charles  L.  Wa.shburn,  of  Hinsdale.  They 
have  one  son,  Edgar  B. 

For  many  years  Mr.  Bassett  was  a  supporter  of 
the  Republican  party,  but  is  now  independent  in 


his  political  views.  In  1887  he  removed  to  Hins- 
dale, where  he  makes  his  home,  but  still  does 
bu.sine.ss  in  Chicago.  He  also  has  in  Hinsdale 
the  largest  greenhouses  to  be  found  in  the  We-st, 
does  an  exten.sive  business  in  this  line,  and  em- 
ploys a  large  number  of  men.  When  he  began 
bu.siness  in  Sycamore  he  had  no  capital  and  bought 
his  outfit  on  credit,  but  he  has  steadily  worked 
his  way  upward,  and  the  bu.siness  of  the  Chicago 
Pictorial  Printing  Company  has  at  times  amounted 
to  $1,000  per  day.  The  company  is  well  known 
throughout  the  United  States  and  Canada,  and 
also  in  parts  of  Australia  and  South  America,  and 
its  .success  is  due  in  a  large  measure  to  the  untir- 
ing efforts  and  good  management  of  Mr.  Ba.ssett. 
He  is  a  genial  and  pleasant  gentleman,  is  very 
popular,  makes  friends  wherever  he  goes,  and  is 
justly  deser\'ing  of  the  high  regard  in  which  he 
is  held. 


-^^+^^ 


(lOHN  BOHLANDER,  who  is  engaged  in  the 
I  hardware,  coal  and  grain  business  in  Hins- 
(2/  dale,  is  a  son  of  John  and  Catherine  (Glos) 
Bohlander,  natives,  of  Germany,  and  while  his 
parents  were  cro.ssing  the  Atlantic  to  America  he 
was  born.  May  23,  1836.  The  family  luimbered 
ten  children,  five  .sons  and  five  daughters,  of 
whom  five  are  yet  living,  namely:  John,  Peter, 
Philip,  Adam,  and  Mary,  wife  of  Rudolph  Pfister, 
of  Brookfield,  Mo.  The  father  was  a  farmer  by 
occupation,  and  after  his  arrival  in  this  country 
he  located  in  Cook  County,  111.,  where  he  bought 
a  farm  of  one  hundred  and  twenty  acres  of 
Government  land  at  $1.25  per  acre.  There  he 
made  his  home  for  about  fifteen  years,  after 
which  he  came  to  DuPage  County,  and  bought 
land  near  Elmhur.st,  upon  which  he  lived  until 
his  death  in  1862,  at  the  age  of  fifty-four  years. 
His  first  wife  died  in  Cook  County,  and  he  after- 
ward married  again,  by  the  second  wife  having 
four  children :  William,  Ernest,  Amelia  and  Doris. 
The  parents  of  our  subject  were  both  members  of 
the  Lutheran  Church. 

The  paternal  grandfather  also  bore  the  name 


(Photo'd  by  Mills.) 


Rev.  S.  Stover. 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


291 


of  John  Bohlamler.  He  CTi»ssc<l  the  hriii\  iki-p 
in  1840,  and  uytou  a  fanii  in  Cook  Count).  111., 
spent  his  rtnnainins  days,  passing  away  at  the 
age  of  eighty-nine  years.  He  had  four  children, 
three  sons  and  a  daughter.  The  maternal  grand- 
father. John  Glos.  died  at  the  advanced  age  of 
ninety-four  years.  He  brought  his  daughter  and 
her  family  to  America  in  1836.  and  conliuued  a 
resident  of  this  ctjuntry  until  called  to  his  final 
rest. 

The  gentleman  whose  name  heads  this  record 
was  reared  in  CiK)k  and  DuPage  Counties  and  in 
the  common  schtxils  acquired  his  etlucation.  He 
lived  with  his  father  upon  the  farm  until  he  had 
anained  his  majority,  and  then  embarked  in  the 
grocery  business  in  York  Center,  continuing  op- 
erations in  that  line  for  about  three  years.  On 
selling  out  he  resumed  farming,  which  he  followed 
for  a  few  years,  and  in  1S71  he  came  to  Hinstlale, 
where  he  opened  a  dry-goods  and  grocery  store, 
which  he  carried  on  for  about  five  years.  He 
then  sold  out  and  his  next  enterprise  was  the 
hardware  business,  which  he  has  ct>ntinue<l  up  to 
the  present  time. 

As  a  companion  and  helpmate  on  life's  journey. 
Mr.  Bohlander  chose  Miss  Sallie  Wolf,  daughter 
of  George  and  Mar>  Eva  (Hines)  Wolf  Their 
union  was  celebrated  NovenilK-r  2-,  1861,  and 
has  been  blessed  with  two  sons  and  seven  daugh- 
ters, as  follows:  Carrie,  wife  of  Edmund  Dorste- 
wil2,  by  whom  she  has  six  children;  Edmund. 
Winfred.  AUiert.  ICdith.  Margaret,  and  Catherine, 
deceased:  Louisa,  wife  of  Charles  Hedge,  by 
whom  she  has  one  son.  John:  Sarah,  Emma  and 
John,  at  home:  Henry .  who  married  Miss  Minnie 
Yuers,  and  has  one  daughter,  Myra:  and  two 
children  who  died  in  infancy. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Bohlander  are  members  of  the 
Lutheran  Church,  and,  in  politics,  he  is  a  sup- 
porter of  the  Denujcracy.  While  residing  in  York 
Center  he  served  as  Postmaster,  and  has  also  filled 
that  office  in  Hinsdale.  He  owns  a  good  resi- 
dence in  this  place  besides  his  store  and  ware- 
house. His  sons,  John  and  Henry,  are  a.ssoci- 
ated  with  him  in  the  hardware  business  under  the 
firm  name  of  John  Bohlander  &  Sons.  They 
carry  a  cjmplete  and  well-selected  stt»ck  of  shelf 


and   htavN    liardware,   also  grain,    .ind 

are  enjoying   a  large  and  i  increasing 

trade.  They  are  wide-awake  and  enterprising 
business  men,  and  their  liberal  •  is  well 

deser\'ed.  The  senior  meujber  :  .  '  his  life 
of  fifty-six  years  in  Cook  and  DuPage  Counties 
and  knew  Chicago  when  it  was  a  mere  village  on 
a  wet  prairie.  He  is  a  genial  and  warm-hearted 
man,  of  liberal  and  progressive  views,  and  one  of 
the  enterprising  citizens  of  Huisdnle.  a  place  of 
about  two  thousand,  which  is  recognized  as  one  of 
Chicago's  loveliest  suburbs.  In  the  welfare  of 
this  comnuinity  he  ever  takes  an  actrve  and  com- 
mendable interest. 


h^^f-^ 


f=3 


ILLIAM  W.  GorRLHY.  M  1)..  who  is 
engaged  in  the  practice  of  medicine  in 
IX>wner's  Grove,  claims  Ireland  as  the  land 
ul  hi.>.  birth,  which  occurred  in  Donegal,  on  the 
I  ith  of  March.  1865.  He  is  a  son  of  James  and 
Ellen  Gourley.  The  father  was  bom  in  the  same 
locality  as  his  son.  and  was  a  land-owner  of  Ire- 
land. He  is  still  living,  but  the  mother  died 
during  the  infaticy  of  the  Doctor.  Their  family 
numtwred  five  children  besides  our  subject:  Annie, 
wife  of  Alexander  Weir,  who  resides  on  the  Emer- 
ald Isle:  Ellen,  wife  of  J.  Galbraith;  James,  a  prop- 
erty-owner of  Ireland:  Li/.zie.  wife  of  Dr.  J.  Mc- 
Feeters.  also  a  resid<rnt  of  that  country :  and  Jo- 
seph, who  still  lives  in  the  land  of  his  birth. 

The  Doctor,  who  is  the  youngest  of  the  family 
and  the  only  one  now  living  in  America,  attended 
the  Royal  School  of  Raphoe,  and  at  the  age  of 
eighteen  years  enlere<l  the  Royal  College  of  Sur- 
geons, which  is  Icjcated  in  Dublin.  Ireland.  He 
was  graduated  from  that  noted  institution  in  1S87, 
and  then  spent  some  time  in  the  city  hospital  of 
Dublin,  after  which  he  was  surgeon  for  the  Do- 
minion Steamship  Company  for  six  months.  On 
the  expiration  of  that  jx-riod,  he  removetl  to  Liv- 
erpool, England,  where  he  engaged  in  practice  for 
a  year.     He  then  came  to  America. 

Ere  leaving  Ireland,  however.  Dr.  Gourley 
wa.-«    niarrietl    to   Mrs.   Caroline    <  Gorman )    Mur- 


292 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


phy,  widow  of  Frank  Murphy.  Their  union 
was  celebrated  in  October,  1889.  The  year  fol- 
lowing their  marriage,  Dr.  Gourley  brought  his 
wife  to  the  United  vStates.  He  crossed  the  At- 
lantic to  Montreal,  thence  made  his  way  to  Chi- 
cago, and  after  a  few  days  came  to  Downer's 
Grove,  where  he  opened  an  office  and  began 
practice,  which  he  has  since  continued  with  good 
success.  He  fitted  him.self  for  his  profession  in 
one  of  the  best  medical  schools  of  the  world,  and 
his  ability,  both  natural  and  acquired,  has  made 
him  a  .successful  practitioner,  and  has  gained  for 
him  a  high  position  in  this  locality.  He  keeps 
well  informed  on  everything  connected  with  the 
medical  science,  and  has  already  won  a  reputa- 
tion which  might  well  be  the  envy  of  many  an 
older  practitioner.  Socially,  he  is  a  member  of 
the  Masonic  fraternity,  and  in  religious  belief  is  a 
Presbvterian. 


^+^ 


.t^- 


l=" 


REV.  SEYMOUR  STOVER,  who  died  in 
Wheaton  on  the  26th  of  January,  1891,  was 
one  of  the  noble  pioneers  of  Methodism  in 
northern  Illinois  and  southern  Wisconsin,  and  was 
among  the  heroic  and  .self  sacrificing  founders  of 
the  Rock  River  Conference.  He  was  born  in  Ben- 
nington, Vt.,  February  21,  18 14,  while  his  mother 
was  on  a  visit  to  a  sick  brother  there.  He  was  taken 
from  there  at  the  age  of  six  weeks,  never  to  return. 
His  parents,  Joseph  and  Nancy  Stover,  were  res- 
idents of  Rome,  Oneida  County,  N.  Y.  He  was 
a  descendant  of  one  of  the  early  Dutch  famihes 
of  New  York.  His  fir.st  ancestor  in  this  country 
is  supposed  to  have  come  from  Holland  about 
1755,  and  settled  in  Dutche,ss  County,  N.  Y., 
afterward  removing  to  Rens.selaer  County.  A 
brother  who  came  at  the  same  time  went  to  Penn- 
sylvania and  later  to  Indiana.  The  name  of  this 
first  ancestor  cannot  now  be  determined,  but  it  is 
known  that  he  enlLsted  in  the  French  and  Indian 
War,  and  died  in  the  service  of  his  adopted  coun- 
try, about  1775.  His  son  Jacob  probably  came 
with  him  from  the  Old  Country.  The  latter  mar- 
ried Miss  Lydia  Doty,   who  was  English.     He 


fought  in  the  Revolution,  under  Gen.  Stark,  at 
Ft.  Stanwix  (afterward  Ft.  Schuyler,  N.  Y.,  now 
Rome)  and  at  Bennington,  and  died  in  1802.  He 
had  three  sons,  Martinas,  Jacol)  and  Joseph. 

Joseph  Stover  was  born  in  1785,  probably  in 
Rensselaer  County,  and  settled  at  Rome.  His 
wife,  Nancy  Shaw,  was  hiscou.sin,  and  of  English 
family.  In  1837  he  moved  to  Kenosha,  Wis., 
where  he  engaged  in  farming,  and  died  in  1865. 
His  eight  children  were;  Lydia  Maria,  Daniel, 
Seymour,  Deborah,  Luranda,  Angeline,  Julius 
Cyrus  and  Mary  Ann. 

Seymour,  the  second  .son  and  third  child  of 
Joseph  Stover,  had  but  small  opportunities  for 
study  in  his  childhood  and  youth,  but  was  a  stu- 
dent all  through  his  later  life.  He  came  to  Illi- 
nois in  1836,  and  .soon  located  at  Kenosha,  Wis., 
where  he  opened  a  private  Grammar  School  for 
young  men  and  women.  While  there,  his  right 
shoulder  was  injured  by  the  accidental  discharge 
of  a  gun  in  the  hands  of  a  companion,  while 
duck-hunting  on  the  lake.  This  injury  caused 
him  much  pain  in  his  la.st  years,  but  he  kept  at 
work  until  he  had  almost  completed  the  allotted 
years  of  man. 

Becoming  convinced  of  his  mission  as  a  '  'fisher  of 
men, ' '  he  began  preaching.  He  was  recommended 
to  the  Rock  River  Conference,  then  in  its  infancy, 
and  entered  that  body  in  full  two  years  later.  His 
first  ministerial  work  was  on  the  DuPage  Circuit, 
which  included  St.  Charles  and  Aurora,  and  ex- 
tended from  Chicago  to  Fox  River,  covering  six- 
teen hundred  square  miles.  The  following  year  he 
rode  a  circuit  of  three  thousand  miles.  On  the 
i6th  of  February,  1843,  at  Naperville,  111.,  he 
was  married  to  Miss  Lucy  Augusta  Patterson, 
who  died  February  7,  1844,  at  Waukesha,  Wis., 
leaving  a  .son.  That  son,  Augustus  Patterson 
Stover,  is  now  a  member  of  the  Illinois  Confer- 
ence of  the  Methodist  Church. 

During  his  active  labors  of  almost  half  a  cen- 
tury, Mr.  Stover  preached  a  second  time  to  the 
Wheaton  people,  being  appointed  to  that  single 
charge  in  1868,  and  when  he  retired  from  the 
pulpit  in  1883  he  came  here  to  reside.  He  pur- 
sued his  studies  on  horseback,  while  riding  over 
the  circuit,  and  beside  the  cabin  fires  of  the  pioneer 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL    RECORD. 


293 


settlers.  He  mastereiJ  Grct:k  and  Latin,  was 
familiar  with  nuKlem  scieni-e,  and  w.-isa  generally 
well  infonnctl  man.  and  withal  a  prof»)«nd  student 
of  the  Hihlc.  In  the  latter  years  of  his  life,  it 
was  his  custom  to  read  at  least  two  chapters  of 
Greek  daily.  His  heart  was  in  the  Christian 
ministry,  and  he  was  very  successful  in  winning 
converts,  his  power  in  prayer  Ixjing  mar\elous. 
His  style  as  a  sjnraker  was  clear  and  accurate, 
and  remarkable  for  force  and  lieauty.  In  i8S.^  he 
publishe<l  a  volume  of  sennons.  which  e.xemplilv 
his  profound  scholarship  and  interest  in  the  wel- 
fare of  his  fellowl)eings. 

Mr.  Stover  joined  the  Masonic  order  at  Belvi- 
dere.  111.,  in  1.S56,  and  attaine<l  high  rank  in  the 
order.  ser\-ing  as  Grand  Prelate  of  the  State  for 
five  years.  In  Hennepin,  111..  June  15,  1846,  he 
married  Miss  Maria  H.  RolK'rtson.  a  native  of 
Virginia,  and  seven  children  were  given  to  this 
union,  only  three  surviving  the  perio<l  of  infancy. 
.\ddie,  the  eldest,  is  the  wife  of  George  K.  Craw 
ford,  residing  at  Richmond,  Va.  Forrest  Roln-rt 
and  Louise  S.  are  residents  of  Wheaton,  the  latter 
being  the  wife  <>f  Carleton  X.  Gary.  (See  biog- 
raphy elsewhere.  1 

Mrs.  Stover,  who  sur\ives  her  husband,  is  de- 
scended from  an  old  Virginia  family,  of  Scottish 
ancestrj-.  who  came  from  Edinburgh,  Scotland. 
Capt.  William  Rolxrrtson.  a  native  of  Virginia, 
was  the  great-grandfather  of  Mrs.  Stover.  He 
ser\'ed  in  the  cavalr>'  of  the  Revolutionary  army, 
under  Gen.  Henry  !.,«*  1  Ixrtter  known  as  •Light- 
horse  Harry"  1,  who  was  the  father  uf  Gen.  Rob- 
ert E.  Lee,  of  Confederate  fame.  He  dietl  in  his 
old  Virginia  home  a  few  years  after  the  Revolu- 
tion. His  s.>n.  William  Rol>ert.son,  .served  as  a 
Lieutenant  of  cavalry  in  the  War  of  1.S12,  and 
«lied  at  his  old  home  in  Caroline  County,  \'a. 
He  also  had  a  plantation  in  Lancaster  County, 
where  he  lived  a  part  of  the  time.  Daniel  M. 
Rul>crts<jn.  son  of  the  la.st-nametl.  was  Ixjrn  on 
tile  I^tica.ster  County  plantation  in  1H02.  His 
wife.  ICli/al)eth  Pitts  Gayle,  was  of  \'irginian 
birth  and  I-'nglLsh  descent.  He  had  a  plantation 
on  Chesapeake  Bay,  and  also  a  large  plantati<in 
in  Caroline  County,  where  his  children  werelxini. 
He  was  a  large  slave-holder  and  exteiLsive  planter. 


Mrs.  Stover,  his  eldest  child,  was  lionj  January 
8,  1828,  and  came  to  Illi:.ois  with  her  jiarents  in 
i.S4;v  The  father  die<l  in  1S71).  at  I^icoii,  Mar- 
shall County,  in  vvhiif  his  wife-  p;is.»iil  awav  in 
i«44. 

II.LIAM  H  1-:MKRV,  one  of  the  progress 
ive  and  i)ublic-sj)irite<l  citizens  of  Elni- 
hurst.  where  he  has  made  his  home  since 
j.s.sy,  conies  from  the  far-oflf  Pine  Tree  State.  He 
was  bom  in  Kairtield,  Me..  March  27.  1H40,  and 
is  one  of  a  family  of  eleven  children  whose  parents 
Were  All)en  and  Betsy  !•'.  (Tol>eyi  Emery,  also 
natives  of  Maine.  The  family  is  of  French  de- 
scent, but  the  grandfather,  Briggs  Emery,  was  a 
Maine  farmer.  The  maternal  grandfather,  Jona- 
than Tolxry,  also  followed  fanning  in  that  State. 
The  father  of  our  subject  was  a  w<k>1  merchant, 
ami  carrictl  on  that  business  in  Water\-ille,  Me., 
until  his  death,  which  occurred  in  1872.  at  the 
age  of  sixty-nine  years.  His  wife  still  sur\-ives 
him  and  is  now  in  the  eightieth  year  of  her  age. 
Of  their  six  sons  and  five  daughters,  only  five 
sons  and  a  daughter  are  now  living:  Albert  P., 
Albcn  F.,  Charles  M.,  William  H.,  James  H., 
and  Lind  A.,  wife  of  Henry  Hanson  of  Water- 
ville.  Me. 

Mr.  F)mer\-  whose  name  heads  this  record 
spent  the  first  twelve  years  of  his  life  in  the  city 
of  his  nativity,  and  then  accompanied  his  parents 
on  their  removal  to  Water\-ille,  where  the  greater 
part  of  his  education  was  ac<|uiretl.  He  remained 
under  the  parental  roof  until  he  attained  his  ma- 
jority, and  then  went  from  Waterville  to  Augusta. 
where  he  engage*!  in  running  a  m uLit  i'm  ^umi.. 
time. 

On  the  6th  of  Octolier.  iSh^,,  Mi.  ICiiitis  was 
unitetl  in  marriage  with  Mi.ss  Mary  A.  Tolxrn.  a 
daughter  of  Samuel  and  Nancy  (  Holbrtwk  )  To- 
Ixrn,  of  the  Buckeye  State.  Five  chiMren  have 
iK-eu  Ijorn  of  this  union,  three  sons  and  two 
daughters:  John  T.,  Bert,  Ida,  William  H.  and 
Gracie.  Bert  die<l  in  infancy,  but  the  others  are 
still  living. 

The  year  1869  witnessed  the  emigration  of  Mr. 


294 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


Emerv  wesUvard.  He  engaged  in  the  hide  and 
leather  business  in  Chicago,  and  has  since  con- 
tinued operations  along  that  line.  Locating  in 
Oak  Park,  he  continued  to  make  that  place  his 
residence  until  18S9.  when  he  came  to  Elmhurst. 
This  place  at  that  time  was  a  slow-going  town, 
but,  owing  to  the  efforts  of  Mr.  Emery  and  a  few 
other  enterprising  citizens,  it  has  become  a  thriv- 
ing village.  He  was  instrumental  in  organizing 
a  stock  company  for  the  building  of  water  works, 
and  was  the  prime  mover  in  securing  the  sub- 
scriptions for  stock  for  macadamizing  the  streets. 
He  owns  a  nice  residence  here  and  al.so  a  farm. 

Socially,  Mr.  Emer^-  is  a  Knight  Templar  Ma- 
son, and  in  politics  is  a  stanch  advocate  of  Re- 
publican principles.  While  living  in  Oak  Park  he 
serv'ed  as  a  member  of  the  School  Board  for  thir- 
teen 3-ears.  and  during  a  great  part  of  that  time 
was  its  President.  He  is  now  a  member  of  the 
School  Board  of  Elmhurst.  The  cause  of  educa- 
tion finds  in  him  a  friend,  and  every  other  interest 
calculated  to  promote  the  general  welfare  receives 
his  hearty  support.  He  has  been  largely  instru- 
mental in  the  upbuilding  of  this  place,  and  is  rec- 
ognized as  one  of  its  substantial  and  valued  citi- 
zens. 

g  '        ■'""^  ■$"  T  '>  Ira    '  S 

(TESSE  CHILDS  WHEATON,  Jr.,  eldest 
I  son  of  Jesse  C.  and  Orinda  Wheaton  ( see 
\Z/  biography  of  J.  C.  Wheaton,  Sr. ),  is  a  native 
of  DuPage  Coimty,  born  in  Milton  Town.ship,  on 
the  present  site  of  the  city  of  Wheaton.  on  the 
30th  of  August,  1842.  He  remained  on  the 
home  farm  until  he  was  twenty-eight  years  old, 
attending  the  district  school  and  spending  one 
term  at  Wheaton  College.  While  farming  in 
summer,  he  taught  eighteen  winter  terms  of  school 
in  DuPage  County,  and  also  taught  two  summer 
terms. 

In  1867  our  subject  bought  fifty  acres  of  land 
on  .sections  8  and  9,  Milton  Township,  lying  on 
the  northern  border  of  Wheaton,  on  which  he  has 
lived  since  1 87 1.  Aside  from  teaching,  farming 
has  been  his  main  occupation  in  life.  He  has 
added  to  his  holdings  until  he  is  the  possessor  of 


two  hundred  and  seventy-five  acres  of  the  finest 
lands  in  the  county.  A  part  of  this  is  represented 
b}'  an  undivided  interest  in  lands  with  Judge  E. 
H.  Gary.  Mr.  Wheaton  is  also  the  posses.sor  of 
unimproved  lands  in  Lane  County,  Kan.  He  has 
given  his  attention  largely  to  dair\-farming,  and 
has  grown  some  small  grains. 

For  the  last  eighteen  years  Mr.  Wheaton  has 
been  Superintendent  of  Streets  in  Wheaton.  He 
ser\'ed  one  term  as  a  member  of  the  Town  Coun- 
cil, and  as  School  Director  for  nine  years.  He  is 
an  ardent  adherent  of  the  Republican  part}-,  and, 
with  his  wife,  is  a  communicant  of  the  Methodist 
Church. 

December  30,  1866,  our  subject  was  married  to 
Mi.ss  Sarah  Matilda  Brown,  who  was  born  in 
Winfield  Township,  DuPage  County,  and  is  a 
daughter  of  James  and  Anna  (Crane)  Brown, 
who  settled  in  Winfield  in  1834,  and  died  there, 
the  mother  on  the  4th  of  January,  1858,  and  the 
father  in  April,  1881.  They  were  bom,  respec- 
tively, in  Sodus  and  Marion,  Wayne  Count}', 
X.  Y.,  the  father  being  a  son  of  James  and  Eliza- 
beth (White)  Brown,  of  Scotch  and  English  de- 
scent, respectively.  Two  of  Mr.  Wheaton's  three 
children  are  living,  namely:  Edith  May,  a  teacher 
at  Glen  Ellyn,  and  Henr\-  Ward,  at  home.  Sarah 
Brown  died  when  nearly  four  years  old. 

The  spirit  of  enterpri.se  and  persevering  forti- 
tude which  inspired  the  pioneers  of  New  England 
to  locate  and  remain  on  a  forbidding  coast  has 
descended  to  many  of  their  posterity,  and  through 
his  possession  of  those  qualities  Mr.  Wheaton  has 
become  a  useful  and  successful  citizen. 


^1^ 


r^^i 


"S) 


(TUDE  PERIN  GARY,  one  of  the  mo.st  sincere 
I  Christian  men  who  ever  lived  in  DuPage 
Q)  County,  was  among  its  pioneer  .settlers  and 
was  active  in  building  up  its  best  interests.  He 
was  a  worth\-  descendant  of  worthy  New  England 
ancestry-,  an  account  of  whom  is  given  on  another 
page  of  this  work  ( see  biography  of  Erastus 
Gar\-).  He  was  born  in  Putnam,  Conn.,  on  the 
3d  of  Februarj',  181 1,  being  the  fifth  child  of  his 


Ji'DE  V.  Gary. 


P0RTR-\1T  .\ND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


iV5 


parents.  William  and  Luc>- Gan-.  His  childhood 
and  yuntli  were  {kissiiI  ujhin  the  home  farm. 
His  father  i!ie«l  when  he  was  but  six  years  old. 
and  hi?,  training  tlevolvcd  upon  his  mother,  who 
was  a  devout  and  conscientious  woman.  Her 
virtues  are  now  Ix^iu);  jieqictuatetl  in  the  |>eison> 
of  the  third  j^eneration  of  her  desoenihnits. 

At  the  a^v  of  twenty  years.  Mr.  tiary  came 
West,  in  com|tany  with  his  elder  brother  anil 
sister.  Krastns  and  Orinda  Gary  .  After  a  short 
sojonni  in  Illinois,  he  went  to  Michi};an  and  re- 
maine<l  until  he  was  able  to  save  up  a  small  sum. 
as  the  result  of  his  lalxirs  in  teaching  scIum)!,  when 
he  liecame  a  jiennanent  resident  of  Du Page  Coun- 
ty.  in  1K33,  settling  at  that  time  on  a  farm  in  Win- 
field  Township,  where  his  brother  and  sister  be- 
fore nientiouetl  joine<l  him  in  keeping  house. 
The  sister  in  March.  1S39,  married  J,  C. 
Wheaton.  an  honoreil  pioneer  of  Dnl'age  Coun- 
ty I  see  bio;;raphy  elsewhere  in  this  ImhjIc  ).  In 
the  spring  ot  iKj^j.  at  West  Thompson,  Conn., 
J ude  Gary  married  Miss  Margaret  I...  daughter 
of  Rev.  William  Kimlwll.  who  settletl  in  Wa\  ne 
Township,  this  county,  in  iS.^7.  Mr.  Kimball 
was  a  native  of  \'ennont.  as  was  also  his  wife, 
Lovisa.  lx>m  in  I,athrop.  He  was  a  Methfxiist, 
and  preached  in  Kane  and  Dul'age  Counties  for 
thirty  years,  retiring  to  Wheaton,  where  he  died 
in  1x69,  and  his  wife  two  years  before.  Mrs. 
Gary  died  July  25.  1862,  leaving  eight  children, 
who  are  named  and  now  located  as  follows; 
George  P.  and  Lucy  Mariette  (  Mrs.  Dr.  Alfrctl 
Watennan  1.  of  Wheaton;  Margaret  I.^>ra.  wife  of 
William  Wright,  of  Ames.  Iowa;  Franklin  Jnde, 
Westside.  Iowa;  Jane  I^nisa  (  Mrs.  Kufus  Tay 
lor  I,  Kdwin  A..  Laura  Klizalnrth  (wife  of  Charles 
H.  Smith)  and  William  S. .  of  Wheaton. 

Mr.  Gary  l>ecamc  converted  and  joined  the 
Metho.list  Church  when  he  was  eleven  years  old. 
and  ever  after  .sought  to  ser\'e  G<hI  liefore  every- 
thing else.  Throughout  a  long  and  useful  career, 
he  carrie»l  his  religion  into  everytlay  life,  making 
it  his  rule  and  guide.  He  was  never  t<Mj  busy  in 
the  care  of  his  large  fann  to  have  family 
prayers  daily,  and  strove  to  fidfill  every  duty 
which  his  cruiscienix- t<Jd  him  re.stetl  on  his  shoul- 
ders.    He    heljK-d   urgani/e   the    (in>t    Methodist 


Church  in  this  region,  and  at  \iu  nr-t    , 
conferemx-  after  the  orga  .i/ation  of  the  W 
Circuit,  in  iK.^7.   he  was  made  Di.strict  Steward 
His  brother  Charles  was  at  that  time  Cla-vs  leader 
Juile  (iar\    was  made  Claxs-leader  in   ■H49,  and 
from  that  time  was  continuously  an  officer  of  the 
church.      For  many  vears  he  was  Su|M:rintendent 
of    the  Sabbath  scIkmiI   at   Warrenville      Gary's 
Mills,    where  the  lirst  class  ua.s  organized,  was 
the  site  of  a  mill  oi)erated  by   Mr    Gar\  and  his 
brothers,    and  still  bears   the  name,    though  the 
mill  is  long  since  gone 

Mr.  Gary  had  a  m<>si  j;eiu-ious  -tiature.  and 
sought  to  liestow  happiness  on  tln»se  around  him. 
never  seeking  seU  or  worldly  gain.  He  would 
not  deceive  any  one.  either  by  inference  or  direct 
.statement,  considering  the  former  quite  as  wicke<l 
as  the  latter,  and  was  emphatically  that  noblest 
work  of  G<k1,  an  honest  man.  He  was  an  in- 
dustrious farmer,  and  was  at  work  up  t«»  within 
four  days  of  his  death.  On  Friday  and  Satur- 
day, the  6th  and  7th  of  May.  iSSi.  he  was  sow- 
ing grain  in  his  fields.  Saturday  evening  he 
complained  of  feeling  ill.  and  from  that  time  until 
the  Wedni-sday  following,  the  irth,  he  lay  in  a 
comatose  stale,  when  his  spirit  passf<l  to  its  re- 
ward. 

In  iS^>.^.  Mr.  Gary  was  marrieii  lo  .Mis,  l,\<iia 
.M.  Rose,  widow  of  Dr.  Sanuiel  Rose,  and  daugh- 
ter of  I.*vi  and  Sally  SherwtMKl.  Dr.  R«)se  was 
a  native  f>f  New  York,  and  die<i  while  a  resident 
of  WixxIstiK-k,  this  State.  His  only  child,  .Mary 
E..  is  the  wife  of  Charles  Wilson,  residing  at 
Lockport,  III.  Mrs.  Gary's  father  was  a  son  of 
Levi  and  Polly  1  Enos  1  Sherwoml.  who  went  from 
Connecticut  to  New  York  very  early  in  the  .set- 
tlement of  the  western  part  of  that  State.  Mrs. 
Gary  was  boni  in  Oxford.  Chenango  County. 
N.  Y.  Her  mother  was  a  daughter  «if  Ishmael 
and  I.ydia  Nichols,  n{  Rhode  Island  The  moth- 
er i>f  I.ydia  ( SiKriicer  1  Nichols,  lost  her  lifc  in 
bringing  this  child  into  the  wtirld,  and  the  latter 
was  rejire<l  b\  her  matertial  grandparents,  .Mr 
Hall  and  wife.  Four  children  were  givin  to  .Mr 
Gary  through  his  sci-ond  union  The  youn;4est. 
I.ily  Marie.  <lie<l  when  eleven  UKinths  old  The 
utherb  re»ide  in  Wheaton.  and  are  natnctl  rtepcct- 


296 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


ively:  Eben  vSherwood,  Lewis  Erastusand  Charles 
Levi.  Mrs.  Garj'  is  privileged  to  spend  the 
evening  of  her  days  surrounded  by  her  sons,  who 
are  worthy  successors  of  a  noble  father.  The  eld- 
est is  employed  by  the  Chicago  &  Northwestern 
Railway  Company.  Lewis  is  general  book- 
keeper in  the  Corn  Exchange  Bank  at  Chicago, 
where  he  began  as  messenger  boy,  and  Charles  is 
one  of  the  Tellers  at  the  Merchants'  Loan  &  Trust 
Company  Bank.  Eben  Gary  married  Minnie 
Belle  Hall,  and  has  a  daughter,  Gladys  Hall 
Gary.  Charles  L.  Gary  married  Elsie  Joanna 
White.  All  the  sons  of  Mr.  Gary  are  earnest 
Republicans. 


e^+-^ 


[s~ 


RNEELAND  PROUTY,  a  well-known  citi- 
zen of  Hinsdale,  was  born  in  the  old  Granite 
vState  in  1828,  and  comes  of  a  family  of 
Scotch  origin.  His.  ancestors,  however,  have 
lived  for  some  generations  in  America.  His  par- 
ents were  George  and  Mary  (Wilson)  Prouty. 
The  father  was  a  farmer  and  stock-raiser,  and  fol- 
lowed that  business  throughout  his  entire  life. 
He  passed  away  in  1868,  at  the  age  of  sixty- 
seven  years.  His  wife  died  in  1843.  They  were 
people  of  sterling  worth  and  had  the  high  regard 
of  all  who  knew  them.  Their  family  numbered 
eight  children,  seven  of  whom  are  ^-et  living. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  acquired  his  educa- 
tion in  the  common  schools  of  the  neighborhood. 
His  early  boyhood  days  were  passed  midst  play 
and  work,  and  after  leaving  .school  he  continued 
to  give  his  father  the  benefit  of  his  services  until 
attaining  his  majority.  At  the  age  of  twenty- 
one,  however,  he  bade  adieu  to  home  and  friends 
and  started  out  to  make  his  own  way  in  the 
world.  He  soon  secured  employment  with  the 
Vermont  Valley  Railroad  Company,  and  later  he 
worked  for  the  Western  Vermont,  Rochester  & 
Syracuse  Railroad,  with  which  he  was  connected 
for  some  time.  He  severed  his  connection  with 
that  company  in  order  to  accept  a  position  with 
the  South  Side  Railroad,  in  Virginia,  where  he 
had  charge  of  the  track-laying.      In    1856,    he 


came  west  to  Chicago,  and  began  working  in  the 
track  department  of  the  Chicago  &  Milwaukee 
Railroad  Company,  now  a  part  of  the  Chicago  & 
Northwestern  system. 

In  the  meantime,  Mr.  Prouty  was  married. 
In  1854  he  led  to  the  marriage  altar  Mi.ss  Amelia 
Kelley,  of  Vermont,  who  died  two  years  later. 
In  i86i,he  was  again  married,  his  second  union 
being  with  Miss  Elizabeth  Pratt,  of  Evanston,  111. 
Her  death  occurred  on  the  i6th  of  Mav,  1892,  at 
the  age  of  fifty  years.  Four  children  were  born 
of  their  union,  as  follows:  H.  George,  H.  W., 
W.  B.  and  C.  K.  Two  of  the  sons,  George  and 
Harvey,  are  engaged  in  business  in  Hinsdale,  as 
dealers  in  musical  instruments,  stationery,  etc. 
They  have  a  well-kept  store  and  are  doing  a  good 
business,  which  is  well  deserved,  for  they  earnestly 
desire  to  please  their  patrons  and  are  honorable 
and  straightforward  in  all  dealings. 

After  coming  to  the  West,  Mr.  Prouty  con- 
tinued his  connection  with  the  Chicago  &  Mil- 
waukee Railroad  Company  until  1864,  when  he 
took  a  trip  to  northern  Michigan.  On  his  re- 
turn, he  entered  the  employ  of  Daniel  L.  Wells, 
a  contractor,  serving  as  foreman  of  the  railroad 
construction  gang  for  two  years.  On  the  expira- 
tion of  that  period,  he  secured  a  position  with  the 
Chicago,  Burlington  &  Quinc\-  Railroad  Compani,- 
as  Road-master,  which  place  he  retained  for  ten 
years,  when  he  formed  a  connection  with  the 
Atlantic  &  Pacific  Railroad  Company,  and  served 
as  its  Road-ma.ster  for  two  years,  his  labors  during 
that  time  calling  him  to  New  Mexico  and  Ari- 
zona. 

On  again  coming  to  Chicago,  Mr.  Prout}'  once 
more  formed  a  connection  with  the  Chicago,  Bur- 
lington &  Quincy  Railroad  Company  as  Dock- 
master,  which  position  he  abh'  and  commend- 
ably  filled  for  a  period  of  six  years,  when  he  was 
taken  ill  with  pneumonia.  Before  he  had  re- 
covered he  suffered  an  attack  of  the  grip,  and  for  a 
year,  as  the  result  of  his  sickness,  he  was  unable 
to  engage  in  work.  He  has  never  yet  fully  re- 
covered his  health.  His  long-continued  ser\'ice 
with  the  various  railroad  companies  indicates  his 
trustworthiness  and  fidelity  to  duty.  His  resi- 
dence in  Hinsdale  covers  a  period  of  twenty-three 


Thojias  Lymak. 


Mrs.  Thomas  Lvman. 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAI.   RECORD. 


;••! 


years,  and  has  made  him  a  well  known  liti/cn  of 
the  community.  He  iiere  has  many  friends  and 
is  held  in  high  regard  by  all.  It  was  a  fortunate 
day  for  him  when  he  decide*!  to  iimje  West,  for 
here  he  hxs  met  with  prosjxTilx  ;i>  tht-  nsult  of 
his  earnest  labors. 


\^r^ 


1=^ 


HOMAS  LVM  AN,  a  leading  citizen  of  Down- 
er's Grove,  has  been  prominently  identified 
with  e\te!isive  real-estate  interests  both  in 
this  locality  and  in  Chicago  and  vicinity.  He  is  a 
man  of  most  excellent  business  ability,  sagacious 
and  far-sighted.  His  business  dealings  have  ever 
been  characterized  by  honor  and  uprightness, 
and  it  is  with  pleasure  that  we  present  to  our 
readers  a  sketch  of  this  gentleman.  A  native  of 
New  York,  he  was  bom  in  Oneida  County.  March* 
ID,  1824.  and  is  a  son  of  Rev.  Orange  Lyman. 
The  father  was  bom  in  Litchfield  County,  Conn., 
July  26,  1780,  and  was  of  Knglish  descent.  His 
ancestors  founded  the  family  in  America  in  1761. 
After  arriving  at  mature  years.  Rev.  Mr.  Lyman 
married  Marcia  Dewey,  who  was  bom  in  Berk- 
shire County, Mass., in  March.  1797.  They  became 
the  parents  of  seven  children,  five  sons  and  two 
daughters,  namely:  Stephen  I).,  who  is  living  in 
Maquoketa,  Iowa,  where,  at  the  age  of  seventy- 
eight,  he  is  still  engaged  in  the  practice  of  law; 
Henry  M..  a  famier  of  DuPage  County;  Cornelia, 
who  died  July  29,  1823;  Eurotas,  whodied  March 
I.  iS,^7;  Mar>  E..  whodied  March  27,  1831;  and 
Edward,  who  died  March  4,  1S37. 

The  fatlier  of  this  family  was  reared  on  a  farm 
and  attendetl  Williams  College,  of  William.stown, 
Mass.,  fi'om  which  he  was  graduate*!  aluut  1810. 
He  then  took  up  the  work  of  the  mini.stry,  with 
which  he  was  ever  afterwards  coiuiectetl  to  a 
greater  or  less  extent.  On  leaving  the  Nutmeg 
State,  he  reramed  to  Oneida  County,  N.  Y.,  where 
he  spent  a  numlK-r  of  \ears.  His  next  place  of 
residence  was  in  Painesville.  Ohio,  where  he  en- 
gaged in  preaching  for  the  Presbyterian  Church 
UTitil  1838.  which  year  witnes.se<i  his  removal  to 
Ch-.tago,  the  trip  westward  being  made  In  tt-.Tin 


He  s|K.nt  the  winter  in  Chicago,  and  in  the  spring 
of  is^y  Kvate<l  on  a  tract  of  Government  land 
one  nule  north  of  Downer's  Grove.  When  the 
land  i-ame  into  market  he  purchased  four  hundretl 
acres  from  the  (jovernment  It  was  partly  prai 
rie  and  partly  timber  land  In  tme  pioneer  stvlc 
he  lived  and  devoted  his  time  and  energies  to  the 
development  of  a  farm  and  the  work  of  the  minis- 
tr>-.  The  latch  string  always  hung  out  at  his  home, 
and  many  a  wear>  traveler  has  found  there  a  plac-e 
of  rest  and  refuge  in  the  early  days  of  DuPage 
County.  He  was  a  public-s]>irited  man.  inter- 
ested in  the  growth  of  the  county  an<!  in  the  wel- 
fare of  his  fellow -towH.smen,  and  his  death,  which 
occurred  July  16.  1850.  was  deeply  niounietl.  His 
remains  were  interred  in  Naper\ille  Cemetery. 
The  mother  of  our  subject  was  also  a  faithful 
member  of  the  Presbyterian  Church.  She  pas.scd 
awa>  Januar>-  9,  1873.  and  was  laid  to  rest  at 
Maquoketa.  A  local  writer  thus  speaks  of  this 
excellent  woman: 

■■  Mrs.  Lyman  was  Iwm  in  westem  Massachu- 
setts, on  the  banks  of  the  Housatonic,  the  y,  •■■■■ 
est  of  a  band  of  sisters  distinguished  no  k- 
grace  and  loveliness  of  {lerson  than  for  rare  en- 
dowments of  mind  and  heart.  She  grew  up  in  her 
New  England  home  in  an  atmosphere  of  the  purest 
Christian  love  and  refinement.  While  still  in  her 
early  maiden  years, she  gave  her  hand  to  one,  who, 
obeying  the  last  command  of  the  Master,  had  de- 
voted his  life  to  preaching  the  Gospel;  and  having 
given  up  home  and  kindred,  she  went  forth  trust- 
fully from  her  father's  house  to  share  with  him, 
in  all  sweetness  of  patience  and  tenderness  of  de- 
votion, the  hard.shii)s  and  trials  of  nii.ssionary  life 
in  the  log  dwellings  and  amid  the  mde  settle- 
ments of  those  early  days.  The  first  periinl  of 
this  pioneer  life  was  pa.ssed  with  the  settlers  who 
had  built  their  cabins,  or  had  forme«l  their  .small 
societies, in  central  and  western  New  York.  Borne 
from  therewith  the  increasing  tide  of  |Mipulation 
that  was  ever  sweejiing  westward,  they  found  a 
resting  place  for  a  while  in  the  clearings  that  the 
axe  of  the  emigrant  had  o|K-netl  in  the  dcf  p  wxkIs 
of  northern  Ohio.  For  many  years  they  dwelt 
there,    suffering  hardship,    sick-  ■  Ix-reavc- 

im  lit    Iiut  .it  l.ivt  tiiiivi-<I  frmii  !)  <,.  niake 


>5 


PORTRAIT  AND  HIOGRAPHICAL  RI-XORD. 


years,  ami  lias  iiimlc  liiin  a  well  known  lili/cn  of 
the  aminmnity.  He  liere  has  many  friends  and 
is  held  in  hij;h  regard  by  all.  It  was  a  fortunate 
day  for  him  when  he  defide<l  to  amic  West,  for 
here  he  has  niet  with  prosperity  xs  the  result  of 
his  eaniest  lalwrs. 


*#^-^e 


'  lU  )MAS  LVM  AN.  a  leading  citizen  of  Down- 
er's Grove,  has  l>een  prominently  identified 
with  extensive  real-estate  interests  Ixith  in 
this  locality  and  in  Chicago  and  vicinity.  He  is  a 
man  of  most  excellent  business  ability,  sagacious 
and  far  sightetl.  His  business  dealings  have  ever 
been  characteri/.etl  by  honor  and  uprightness, 
and  it  is  with  pleasure  that  we  present  to  our 
readers  a  sketch  of  this  gtntleman.  A  native  of 
New  York,  he  was  bom  in  Oneida  County,  March* 
lo,  1S24.  and  is  a  .son  of  Rev.  Orange  Lyman. 
The  father  was  Ijom  in  Litchfield  County,  Conn.. 
July  26,  1780,  and  was  of  Knglish  descent.  His 
ancestors  founded  the  family  in  America  in  1761. 
After  arriving  at  mature  years.  Rev.  Mr.  Lyman 
raarrieil  Marcia  Dewey,  who  was  boni  in  Berk- 
shire County,  Mass.,  in  March,  1797.  They  became 
the  parents  of  seven  children,  live  sons  and  two 
daughters,  namely:  Stephen  D..  who  is  living  in 
Maquoketa,  Iowa,  where,  at  the  age  of  seventy- 
eight,  he  is  still  engagetl  in  the  practice  of  law; 
Henry  M.,  a  farmer  of  Du  Page  County;  Cornelia, 
who  died  July  29,  182^^;  Eurotas,  whodied  March 
I,  1.S37;  MaryE.,  whodied  March  27.  1831;  and 
Ivdward,  who  diet!  March  4,  1837. 

The  father  of  this  family  was  reared  on  a  farm 
and  attende<l  Williams  College,  of  Williamstown, 
Ma.ss.,  from  which  he  was  graduated  alxiul  1810. 
He  then  took  up  the  work  of  the  niinistr>-,  with 
which  he  was  ever  afterwards  coiiiiecte<l  to  a 
greater  or  less  extent.  On  leaving  the  Nutmeg 
State,  he  reinovwl  to  Oneida  County ,  N .  Y . ,  where 
he  spent  a  nunilx.-r  of  years.  His  next  place  of 
residence  was  in  Painesville,  Ohio,  where  he  en- 
gaged in  preaching  for  the  Presbyterian  Church 
until  1838,  which  year  witnessed  his  removal  to 
Chii-ago.  the  trip  westward  being  made  by  te.Tm 


He  .s[K-iit  the  winter  111  Chicago,  and  in  llic  spring 
of  i8,V;  lo<-"ate<l  on  a  tract  of  t''i»)vernineiit  land 
one  mile  north  of  Downer's  (irove.  When  the 
laiul  came  into  market  he  piircliasi-<l  four  hundreti 
acres  from  the  (loverninent.  It  was  partly  prai 
rie  and  partly  timber  land.  In  true  pioneer  style 
he  Iive<l  and  devoted  his  time  and  energies  to  the 
development  of  a  farm  and  the  work  of  the  miiiis- 
tr>'.  The  latch  string  always  hung  out  at  his  home, 
and  many  a  wean,'  traveler  has  found  there  a  place 
of  rest  and  refuge  in  the  early  days  of  DnPage 
C<mnty.  He  was  a  public-spirited  man,  inter- 
este<l  in  the  growth  of  the  county  and  in  the  wel- 
fare of  his  fellow-townsmen,  and  his  death,  which 
occurred  July  16,  1850,  was  deeply  mounied.  His 
remains  were  interred  in  Naperville  Cemetery. 
The  mother  of  our  suiyect  was  also  a  faithful 
mcmlxrr  of  the  Presbyterian  Church.  She  passed 
away  Januar>-  9.  1873,  and  was  laid  to  rest  at 
Maquoketa.  A  local  writer  thus  sj)eaks  of  this 
excellent  woman: 

"  Mrs.  Lyman  was  l)orn  in  western  Nfassachu- 
.setts,  on  the  banks  of  the  Housatonic,  the  young- 
est of  a  band  of  sisters  distinguished  no  less  for 
grace  and  loveliness  of  jK-rsoii  than  for  rare  en- 
dowments of  mind  and  heart.  She  grew  up  in  her 
New  England  home  in  an  atmosphere  of  the  purest 
Christian  love  and  refinement.  While  still  in  her 
eariy  maiden  years, she  gave  her  hand  to  one.  who, 
olieying  the  Ia.st  command  of  the  Master,  had  de- 
voted his  life  to  preaching  the  Gosjx-l;  and  having 
given  up  home  and  kindretl.  she  went  forth  trust- 
fully from  her  fathers  house  to  share  with  him. 
in  all  sweetness  of  patience  and  tenderness  of  de- 
votion, the  hardships  and  trials  of  mi.ssionan.-  life 
in  the  log  dwellings  and  amid  the  rude  settle- 
ments of  those  early  da>s.  The  first  |X'ri'Hl  of 
this  pioneer  life  was  pa.ssetl  with  the  settlers  who 
had  built  their  cabins,  or  had  formed  their  small 
societies, in  central  ami  western  New  York.  Rome 
from  there  with  the  increasing  tide  of  jMtpulation 
that  was  ever  sweeping  westward,  they  found  a 
resting-place  for  a  while  in  the  clearings  that  the 
axe  of  the  emigrant  had  ojKMied  in  the  deep  wowls 
of  northern  Ohio.  For  nutny  years  they  dwelt 
there.  suflTering  hardship,  sickness  ami  Ix-reavc- 
1111  lit    liiit  .it  I:isl  iiiovi-d  from  that  ri.-L'iiin  to  make 


«5 


306 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


when  he  became  his  father's  regular  assistant  in 
the  furniture  store.  At  twent,v  he  began  build- 
ing on  contracts,  and  four  years  later  became  a 
traveUng  salesman  in  the  emplo)-  of  the  Red 
Wing  Manufacturing  Company,  with  which  he 
continued  five  years.  After  traveling  two  years 
for  the  Milwaukee  Furniture  Company,  he  en- 
gaged with  his  present  employer,  John  P.  Fowler, 
of  Chicago,  with  whom  he  is  sen-ing  his  fifth 
year,  being  now  city  salesman.  He  became  a 
resident  of  Wheaton  in  May,  1891.  He  is  a 
member  of  the  Royal  Arch  Masons  of  Oshkosh, 
Wis.,  and  adheres  to  the  Republican  party  on 
questions  of  government. 

In  1880  Mr.  Sawyer  married  Miss  Emma  Smith, 
who  was  born  in  Wheaton,  the  daughter  of  Hiram 
Smith  ( see  biography  of  the  latter  in  this  work ) . 
Two  sons  were  born  of  this  union,  Daniel  Edward 
and  Hiram  Wayne.  The  latter  died  at  the  age  of 
six  vears. 


^^+^§ 


r\ROF.  HENRY  S.  EDWARDS,  one  of  Hins- 
L/  dale's  most  prominent  citizens,  is  a  native  of 
fS  the  Pine  Tree  State.  He  was  born  in  Gor- 
ham.  Me.,  January  16,  1820,  and  is  a  son  of  Cal- 
vin and  Susan  (Lincoln)  Edwards.  The  family 
came  originall}-  from  Wales,  but  the  parents  were 
born  in  Massachusetts.  The  father  became  a 
manufacturer  of  pianos  in  Portland,  Me.,  but  his 
last  days  were  spent  in  Natick,  Mass.,  where  he 
died  at  the  age  of  eighty.  His  wife  passed  away 
at  the  age  of  fifty-eight.  Both  were  members  of 
the  Congregational  Church.  They  had  seven 
children,  but  only  three  are  now  living:  Sophia, 
widow  of  Hollis  Randall,  of  Natick,  Mass. ;  Henry 
S.,  of  Hinsdale;  and  Elizabeth,  widow  of  Dr. 
George  Lincoln,  of  Natick. 

Prof  Edwards  of  this  sketch  was  reared  in 
Portland,  Me.,  and  there  acquired  a  liberal  edu- 
cation. He  early  began  studying  music,  and 
when  .still  quite  young  commenced  teaching.  He 
was  a  papular  teacher  of  music  in  Portland  at 
the  age  of  nineteen.  Continuing  his  studies,  he 
became  very-   proficient,    and   his  reputation  ex- 


tended through  many  States.     He  was  also  inter- 
ested with  his  father  in  the  manufacture  of  pianos 
and  organs,  theirs  being  one  of  the  leading  firms  of 
the  East.    Their  factory,  however,  was  destroyed 
by  fire  in  1862.    Removing  to  Natick,  Ma.ss.,  our 
subject  there  made  his  home  for  eighteen  years. 
On  the  1 6th  of  June,  1851,  Prof.  Edwards  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Jane  Hemenway, 
daughter   of    Solomon    and    Clarissa    (Willard) 
Hemenway,    the  former  a  native   of  Massachu- 
setts, and  the  latter  of  Charleston,  N.  H.     The 
family  is  of  Engli.sh  origin,  and  the  paternal  grand- 
father was  a  native  of  the  Bay  State.     The  mater- 
nal grandfather,  who  was  a  Revolutionary  hero, 
was  twice  wounded,  and  for  many  years  after  the 
war  drew  a  pension.     Four  children  were  born  to 
Mr.    and  Mrs.  Edwards.      Willard   H.,    a  short- 
hand  reporter,    who   has    an    office    in    Chicago, 
married   Miss  Minnie  Shattuck,  who  died  in  No- 
vember,   1888,    leaving   four    children:     Mabel, 
Bertram,  Alice  and  Willie.     On  the  6th  of  June, 
1893,  he  wedded  Miss  Frances  Sheldon,  and  they 
reside  in  Hinsdale.     Harrj-  Lincoln  is  Cashier  of 
the    Equitable    Life    Insurance    Company,    with 
headquarters  in  the  Chamber  of  Commerce  Build- 
ing   in    Chicago.     He    married    Marie    Besser, 
and  they  have  three  children:    Ralph,  Carl  and 
Harry.      Clara,  the  third  child  of  the  family,  died 
at   the    age   of  two   years.     Alice,    when   a  girl 
of  fifteen  summers,  went  to  Europe  and  for  three 
years  studied  music  under  the  eminent  instructors 
of  the  Old  Country.      When  very  young  she  had 
shown  marked  ability,  and  for  several  years  before 
traveling  abroad  had  studied  under  her  father's 
instruction.     Upon  her  return  to  America,  at  the 
ao-e  of  eighteen,    she  was  offered  a  position  in 
Wellesley   College,    of  Boston,  where  she  taught 
seven  years.     She  then  became  the  wife  of  Alfred 
Emerson,  Profes,sor  of  Archeology  in  Cornell  Uni- 
versity, a  very  scholarly  and  renowned  man,  who 
has  traveled  extensively  in  foreign  lands.     They 
make  their  home  in  Ithaca,  N.  Y.,  and  have  two 
daughters,  Edith  and  Gertude. 

Prof.  Edwards  and  his  wife  are  members  of  the 
Unitarian  Church,  and  in  early  life  he  was  a 
Mason.  In  1877,  he  and  his  wife  went  to  Eu- 
rope to  place  their  daughter  in  the  Conservatory 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


307 


of  Music  in  Havana.  A  year  later.  Mrs.  E<1- 
wards  returiieil  to  Aiiieriai  ami  c-anie  West  to 
visit  her  .s«.)ii.s,  who  had  located  in  Chicago  some 
years  before.  The  Professor  remained  in  KiirojH.- 
with  his  daughter  for  three  >  ears,  and  then  they 
retunie<l  to  their  native  land,  in  iSSo.  After  his 
return  he  resided  two  years  at  Natick.  and  six 
years  at  Auhunulalc.  Mass..  and  in  1S8K  came  to 
Hin.sdale.  where  he  has  since  made  his  home. 
Although  now  se\enty-four  years  of  age,  he  still 
teaches  njusic  to  a  limited  extent.  In  jiolitics,  he 
is  a  Repul>lic;jn.  A  cnlturetl  and  refineil  gentle- 
man. plea.sant  and  genial  in  manner.  Prof.  Kd- 
wards.  although  his  residence  here  has  IxxMi  of 
short  duration,  has  already  won  many  wann 
friends  throughout  DuPage  County,  and  he  and 
his  estimable  wife  have  the  high  regard  of  all. 


fl  P.  PAXTOX,  a  highly  respected  and  repre 
I  .sentative  fanner  of  Xaiierville  Township, 
C2/  tnakes  his  h<jme  on  section  6.  He  has  long 
been  numbered  among  the  citizens  of  DuPage 
County,  almost  sixty  years  having  pa.ssed  since 
he  came  here.  He  is  familiar  with  its  histon,- 
since  the  days  of  its  early  infancy,  and  has  wit- 
nessed almost  its  entire  growth  and  development, 
having  seen  the  changes  that  have  transformed  it 
from  an  almost  unbroken  tract  to  one  of  the  first 
counties  of  this  commonwealth.  Mr.  Paxton  was 
bom  near  Crawford.sville,  Ind..  August  19,  i8ji. 
His  father,  Thomas  Paxton.  was  a  native  of 
Tennessee,  born  in  1783.  In  an  early  day  here- 
moved  to  Indiana,  locating  on  a  farm  near  Craw- 
fordsville.  and  in  1S35  he  i-ame  to  this  count\ , 
settling  on  a  farm  which  is  now  the  home  of  our 
subject.  He  to<jk  up  the  land  from  the  Govern 
nient.  and  the  only  change  in  ownershi]>  was  when 
he  deeded  it  to  hLs  son.  He  was  an  honored  \>nj 
neer  and  a  man  of  sterling  worth.  His  death  oc- 
curre«l  on  the  old  homestead  in  his  seventy  sixth 
year.     The  Paxton  family  is  of  Scotch  descent. 

The  mother  of  our  subject  Ixire  the  maiden  name 
of  Cynthia  S.  Potts,  and  was  lx)ni  in  South  Caro 
Una  in  1790      Her  father.  Jonathan  Potts,  was  a 


native  of  the  same  State.  Her  death  occurred  in 
this  county  in  her  sixty  fourth  year.  I'nto  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  I'axton  were  Iwirn  twelve  cliildren: 
Maria.  Margaret,  Rachel  Ann.  Kli/aU-th  and 
Thomas  Newton,  all  dcix-ased;  Samuel,  of  Ames, 
Iowa;  Jonathan  H.,  Rotiert  F..  Cynthia,  Mary 
Melinda  and  William  H..  all  deix-ase<l:  ami  James 
1*..  who  comjiletes  the  family. 

We  now  take  up  the  pers<inal  hisii>r\  •<{  James 
Paxton.  who  was  only  four  years  of  age  when  he 
came  with  his  ]>arents  to  DuPage  County.  He 
attended  a  sch<x>l  which  was  taught  by  his  sister 
Margaret,  antl  other  district  schools,  which  were 
held  in  a  log  schcxil liou.se.  with  slab  seats,  huge 
fireplace  and  two  small  wimlows.  Later,  he  was 
a  student  in  the  Granville  schixjl.  He  early  be- 
came familiar  with  all  the  duties  of  fann  life,  aiid 
remained  at  home  with  his  father  until  tlit;  latter's 
death,  caring  for  Ixitli  his  parents  until  they  were 
called  to  the  home  Ixryond.  He  was  first  married  in 
1S56.  the  lady  of  his  choice  being  Miss  Kmeline 
McFarren.  who  dic<l  leaving  one  son.  Frederick 
li..  who  was  lK)rn  in  1S57.  and  now  resides  on  a 
farm  in  Xaperville  Township. 

In  1S62.  Mr.  Paxton  was  united  in  marriage 
with  Lydia  Ann  Burns.  I'nto  them  was  lx>m 
one  child,  but  both  the  mother  and  child  diwl. 
In  i.S6c).  our  subject  was  united  in  marriage  with 
Xcttie  M.  Holmsted.  a  native  of  Canada.  Four 
children  grace  this  marriage,  three  sons  and  a 
daughter:  Xellie.  now  the  wife  of  Loran  L.  Hill, 
a  prominent  agriculturist  of  XaiJer\ille  Town- 
shij);  Udward  S.  James  Iv  and  Riiy  Kd.  all  of 
whom  are  at  home. 

Mr.  Paxton  is  the  owner  of  a  fine  fann  of  two 
hundre<l  and  sixty-five  acres,  and  he  takes  a  ju.st 
jiride  in  the  fact  that  it  is  one  of  tin-  U-sl  tilU-d  in 
the  county.  In  1S7.S  he  erecte<l  a  hand.s«>nic 
brick  residencx-  at  a  cost  of  f^.oxo.  He  has  built 
giMKl  barns  and  other  outbuildings  and  made  man> 
im|>rovements  which  atld  Uuh  to  the  value  and 
attractive  appearanix-  of  the  j)laixv  He  is  widelv 
rii-ogni/ed  as  one  (if  the  leading  and  substantial 
farmers  of  the  ounmunity.  In  |M(Iitics.  he  has 
fiilliiwitl  in  the  foot.steps  of  his  father.  The 
latter  left  the  South  tm  acixiunt  of  slavcn,-.  His 
home  liecame  jiiie  of  the  stations  on  the  famous 


304 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


Adiii  T. ,  second  son  of  Jairus  Childs,  was  born 
April  27,  1817,  in  Wilmington,  Windham  Coun- 
ty, Vt.,  and  was  named  for  his  great-uncle,  Adin 
Thompson,  a  prominent  citizen  of  New  Braintree, 
Mass.  He  remained  on  the  home  farm  till  six- 
teen j-ears  old,  and  at  ten  began  to  learn  his 
father's  trade,  in  the  mean  time  attending  the  com- 
mon school.  In  1833,  he  began  teaching  school, 
and  continued  in  that  work  seven  years.  In 
1840,  he  opened  a  .store  at  Jacksonville,  in  his 
native  county,  which  he  kept  three  years,  .serving 
as  Postmaster  at  the  same  time,  and  then  re- 
turned to  Wilmington,  where  he  conducted  the 
same  business  four  years. 

In  1853,  he  removed  to  Illinois  and  purchased 
a  farm  at  Elk  Grove,  Cook  County,  111.,  and 
tilled  it  three  years.  He  then  sold  out  and  came 
to  Wheaton,  where  he  intended  to  go  into  busi- 
ness, but  was  induced  to  undertake  some  build- 
ing for  his  brother,  who  was  then  a  resident  of 
the  place.  Builders  being  in  great  demand,  he 
continued  building  operations,  which  he  has  not 
wholly  abandoned  yet.  For  many  years  he  was 
the  leader  in  that  line,  but  ceased  contracting  in 
1888.  He  has  turned  out  many  first-class  build- 
ers, who  were  his  apprentices,  the  most  promin- 
ent contractor  now  in  Wheaton  being  his  former 
pupil,  now  his  son-in-law,  whom  he  as.si.sts  when 
he  feels  that  he  mu.st  be  occupied.  (vSee  sketch 
of  H.  D.  Compton. )  More  than  one  hundred 
residences  in  Wheaton  are  among  the  specimens 
of  his  handiwork.  He  built  the  block  which  was 
destroyed  by  fire  on  the  site  of  the  present  Cen- 
tral Block,  the  Kelly  Block,  county  court  hou.se, 
and  other  business  structures. 

Mr.  Childs  has  ever  been  acti\e  in  forwarding 
the  moral,  as  well  as  material,  interests  of  the 
town,  and  contributed  more  than  any  other  indi- 
vidual to  the  construction  of  the  Universalist 
Church,  being  a  prominent  mover  in  the  interests 
of  the  society-.  He  is  univer.sally  respected  by 
his  contemporaries  as  an  industrious,  upright  and 
straightforward  citizen.  Politically,  he  has  al- 
ways affiliated  with  the  Democratic  party,  and 
was  defeated  when  a  candidate  for  Supervisor  only 
becau.se  his  party  is  in  a  hopeless  minority  in  the 
city.     He  has  never  sought  for  political  honors, 


and  only  con.sented  to  be  a  candidate  to  assi.st  in 
keeping  up  the  party  organization.  While  in 
Vermont  he  refused  nomination  for  .some  desir- 
able positions,  .such  as  Representative,  because 
he  preferred  private  pursuits  to  the  delusions  of 
political  emolument.  He  has  always  been  an 
active  man,  and  has  attained  the  reward  of  in- 
dustry-. 

In  1844,  Mr.  Childs  was  married  to  Sarah  N., 
eldest  daughter  of  Judge  John  Roberts  and  his 
second  wife,  Tirzah  Breckenridge.  Judge  Rob- 
erts was  a  native  of  Whitingham,  Windham 
County,  Vt. ,  of  W'elsh  ancestry,  and  moved  to 
Townsend  in  middle  life.  He  came  of  a  promi- 
nent \'ennont  familj-,  his  brother  being  one  of 
the  leading  attorneys  of  the  State.  John  Roberts 
was  County  Judge,  and  several  times  candidate 
for  Governor  on  the  Democratic  ticket.  Tirzah 
Breckenridge  was  a  native  of  Wilmington,  as  is 
Mrs.  Childs.  Three  daughters  complete  the  fam- 
ily of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Childs,  namely:  Tirzah,  Jes- 
sie and  Harriet.  The  eldest  is  the  wife  of  H.  D. 
Compton,  and  the  youngest  of  Alfred  C.  Gary 
(see  biography  of  George  P.  Gary),  all  of  Whea- 
ton. 


^+^P- 


"s: 


|ILIJAM  SUMNER  GARY,  a  practicing 
attorney  of  Chicago,  is  the  fourth  son  of 
Jude  P.  Gary,  and  the  eighth  and  youngest 
child  of  Margaret  L.  Gary,  his  first  wife.  (See 
biography  of  Jude  Gary.)  The  subject  of  this 
biography  was  born  in  Winfield  Township,  Du- 
Page  County,  June  6,  1857.  For  seventeen  years 
he  passed  the  ordinary  life  of  a  Western  farmer's 
boy,  attending  the  district  school  at  Warrenville. 
After  attending  the  Wheaton  High  School  two 
terms,  he  went  to  Chicago,  and  was  employed  as 
reporter  for  the  Chicago  Daily  Law  Bulletin  about 
a  year.  He  then  went  to  Iowa,  and,  entering  the 
Iowa  State  College  at  Ames,  he  alternated  between 
teaching  and  attending  school  for  .some  time.  His 
first  .school  was  in  a  country  district,  five  miles 
from  Ames,  We.stside,  and  he  next  taught  in 
the  schools  of  that  town.  In  1878  he  entered  the 
L,aw  School  of  the    Northwestern  University  at 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RFXORD. 


305 


Chicago,  and  graduated  in  June,  18K0,  having 
made  up  stmie  extra  work  in  tht-  two  years'  course. 
After  j^raduatiiix.  he  entered  the  office  of  Charles 
E.  Simmons,  Land  Commissioner  of  the  Chicago 
&  Xorthwesteni  Railway,  and  was  eniploye<l  in 
examininjL;  titles  and  drawing  deeiis  and  leases, 
thus  gaining  an  extended  kno\vle<lge  of  that 
branch  of  law  work,  and  carrying  through  some 
large  and  im]>ortant  transactions  successfully. 

Going  to  Westside,  Iowa,  he  opened  a  law 
office  in  partnership  with  C.  Haldane,  and  a  year 
later  continued  alone,  remaining  there  four  years. 
In  1884  he  was  the  nominee  of  the  Republican 
party  for  State's  Attorney  of  Crawford  County, 
Iowa,  and  though  the  county  had  a  normal  Dem- 
ocratic majority  of  eight  hundred  votes,  he  was 
defeated  by  oidy  eighty  majority. 

Returning  to  Chicago,  Mr.  Gary  formed  a  part- 
nership with  Howard  Henderson,  under  the  title 
of  Henderson  &  Gar>-.  and  engaged  in  practice 
until  failing  health  comjx-lled  him,  in  Febniarv, 
1893,  to  seek  rest.  After  spending  a  few  months 
in  Colorado,  he  formed  a  connection  with  his 
cousin,  Carleton  N.  Gar>-,  on  the  ist  of  June, 
1893,  and  is  again  in  practice  in  Chicago.  On 
the  incorporation  of  the  city  of  Wheaton,  Mr. 
Gar>-  was,  without  his  solicitation,  made  the 
nominee  for  City  Attorney,  being  elected  to  the 
first  term  of  one  year,  and  was  again  chosen  for  the 
full  term  of  two  \ears,  but  refused  to  Ije  again  a 
candidate.  He  drafted  the  ordinances  establish- 
ing electric  lights  and  sidewalks,  and  many  other 
initial  ordinances  were  the  work  of  his  brain  and 
hand.  He  has  always  been  an  active  Republican, 
and  embraces  the  religious  faith  of  the  MetlitKlist 
Church.  He  is  a  Roval  Arch  Ma.son,  a  Knight 
of  Pythias,  and  a  memljer  of  the  Order  of  the  East- 
em  Star. 

On  the  15th  of  June,  1892,  occurred  an  im- 
portant event  in  Mr.  Gary's  life,  when  he  es- 
poused Mi.ss  Anstiss  W.  Curtiss.  a  native  of  Pe- 
oria, 111.,  and  daughter  of  Nathaniel  H.  and  Jane 
M.  f Warren)  Curtiss.  Mrs.  Gary's  father  was 
a  native  of  Vennont,  and  a  j)roniinent  banker  of 
IVjria.  who  s|)ent  his  winters  in  New  York  City. 
Mrs.  Curtiss  was  a  sister  of  Col.  Julius  M.  War- 
ren,   founder   of  Warrenville.    DuPage  County. 


Mrs.  Gar)'  is  a  writer  of  poems  and  verse,  and 
one  volume  of  her  work  in  blank  verse,  entitled 
"One  yuestion."  has  been  issue<l  from  the  press 
of  Brentano's  in  Chicago,  and  another  woric  is 
alxiut  ready  for  ]>ublication. 


h^-^ 


Ei. 


0 


ANIEL  Jl'NirS  SAWYER  was  the  first 
white  child  boni  in  the  town  of  Wasioja, 
I )(xlge  County,  Minn.,  where  his  birth  oc- 
curred June  24,  1857.  His  grandfather,  Jeremiah 
.Sawyer,  was  a  native  of  Ivngland.  and  came 
with  his  parents  to  America  when  a  child. 
He  became  a  blacksmith  in  mantiood,  and  fol- 
lowe<l  that  <KXupation  in  southern  New  Hamp- 
shire, dying  in  East  Andover,  that  State.  His 
wife,  Hepsibah  Edwards,  was  also  of  English 
birth.  Jeremiah  Sawyer  had  1xh?ii  a  schoolmate 
of  Daniel  Webster  in  New  Hampshire. 

Daniel  Edward,  son  of  Jeremiah  and  Hepsibah 
Sawyer,  was  t)orn  in  Concord,  N.  H..  in  1828. 
He  married  Julia  M.  Gibljons,  a  native  of  Glas- 
gow, Scotland.  Early  in  life,  he  l)ecame  a  con- 
tractor and  builder,  and  did  a  great  deal  of  mill 
work  on  the  Merrimac  River,  in  the  vicinity  of 
Lowell,  and  also  engaged  in  building  in  Boston, 
Mass.  He  moved  to  Minnesota  in  1S55,  and  .set- 
tled on  a  farm  in  Wasioja.  where  he  remained  six 
years.  Later  removing  to  the  village  of  Wasioja,  he 
built  the  seminary  and  other  buildings  there,  and 
in  1.S71  went  to  Pine  Island,  GtKxlhue  County, 
the  same  State,  where  he  engage<l  in  the  sale  of 
furniture  and  lumlxr.  Inder  Presi<leiit  Garfield, 
he  served  three  years  as  A.ssistant  .SuiK-rinteiulent 
of  the  Yellowstone  National  Park,  and  is  now  a 
traveling  fumilnre  salesman,  residing  at  Pine  Is- 
land, where  his  wife  died  in  1875.  Their  five 
children  are  all  living,  as  follows:  Charles  L.,  a 
wheat-buyer  at  Cannon  Falls.  Minn.;  Caleb  M., 
an  attorney  at  Anaconda,  Mont.:  I>.  J.,  who  is 
the  third;  Francis  E.,  an  express  messenger,  who 
resides  at  Butte,  Mont.;  and  Nellie  Iv,  wife  of 
John  L.  Bowman,  residing  at  Cresco.  Iowa. 

Daniel  J.  Sawyer  attended  the  public  schools  of 
Wasioja  and  Pine  Island  until  sixteen  yciirs  old. 


30b 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


when  he  became  his  father's  regular  assistant  in 
the  furniture  store.  At  twenty  he  began  build- 
ing on  contracts,  and  four  years  later  became  a 
traveling  salesman  in  the  employ  of  the  Red 
Wing  Manufacturing  Company,  with  which  he 
continued  five  years.  After  traveling  two  years 
for  the  Milwaukee  Furniture  Company,  he  en- 
gaged with  his  present  employer,  John  P.  Fowler, 
of  Chicago,  with  whom  he  is  sening  his  fifth 
year,  being  now  city  salesman.  He  became  a 
resident  of  Wheaton  in  May,  1891.  He  is  a 
member  of  the  Royal  Arch  Masons  of  Oshkosh, 
Wis.,  and  adheres  to  the  Republican  party  on 
questions  of  government. 

In  1880  Mr.  Sawyer  married  Miss  Emma  Smith, 
who  was  born  in  Wheaton,  the  daughter  of  Hiram 
Smith  (see  biography  of  the  latter  in  this  work). 
Two  sons  were  born  of  this  union,  Daniel  Edward 
and  Hiram  Wayne.  The  latter  died  at  the  age  of 
six  years. 

QROF.  henry  S.  EDWARDS,  one  of  Hins- 
U'  dale's  most  prominent  citizens,  is  a  native  of 
fS  the  Pine  Tree  State.  He  was  born  in  Gor- 
ham.  Me.,  Januar\-  16,  1820,  and  is  a  son  of  Cal- 
vin and  Susan  (Lincoln)  Edwards.  The  family 
came  originally  from  \\"ales,  but  the  parents  were 
bom  in  Massachusetts.  The  father  became  a 
manufacturer  of  pianos  in  Portland,  Me.,  but  his 
last  days  were  spent  in  Natick,  Mass.,  where  he 
died  at  the  age  of  eighty.  His  wife  passed  away 
at  the  age  of  fifty-eight.  Both  were  members  of 
the  Congregational  Church.  They  had  seven 
children,  but  only  three  are  now  living:  Sophia, 
widow  of  Hollis  Randall,  of  Natick,  Mass. ;  Henr\- 
S.,  of  Hinsdale:  and  Elizabeth,  widow  of  Dr. 
George  Lincoln,  of  Natick. 

Prof.  Edwards  of  this  sketch  was  reared  in 
Portland,  Me.,  and  there  acquired  a  liberal  edu- 
cation. He  early  began  studying  music,  and 
when  still  quite  young  commenced  teaching.  He 
was  a  popular  teacher  of  music  in  Portland  at 
the  age  of  ni:ieteen.  Continuing  his  studies,  he 
became  very  proficient,    and  his  reputation  ex- 


tended through  man}-  States.  He  was  also  inter- 
ested with  his  father  in  the  manufacture  of  pianos 
and  organs,  theirs  being  one  of  the  leading  firms  of 
the  East.  Their  factory- ,  however,  was  destroyed 
by  fire  in  1862.  Removing  to  Natick,  Ma,ss.,  our 
subject  there  made  his  home  for  eighteen  years. 

On  the  i6tli  of  June,  1851,  Prof  Edwards  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Jane  Hemenway, 
daughter  of  Solomon  and  Claris.sa  (Willard) 
Hemenwa\-,  the  former  a  native  of  Massachu- 
.setts.  and  the  latter  of  Charleston,  N.  H.  The 
family  is  of  English  origin,  and  the  paternal  grand- 
father was  a  native  of  the  Bay  State.  The  mater- 
nal grandfather,  who  was  a  Revolutionary-  hero, 
was  twice  wounded,  and  for  inan\-  years  after  the 
war  drew  a  pension.  Four  children  were  boni  to 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Edwards.  Willard  H.,  a  short- 
hand reporter,  who  has  an  office  in  Chicago, 
married  Miss  Minnie  Shattuck,  who  died  in  No- 
vember, 1888,  leaving  four  children:  Mabel, 
Bertram,  Alice  and  Willie.  On  the  6th  of  June, 
1893,  he  wedded  Miss  Frances  Sheldon,  and  they 
reside  in  Hinsdale.  Harrj-  Lincoln  is  Cashier  of 
the  Equitable  Life  Insurance  Company,  with 
headquarters  in  the  Chamber  of  Commerce  Build- 
ing in  Chicago.  He  married  Marie  Besser, 
and  they  have  three  children:  Ralph,  Carl  and 
Harr\-.  Clara,  the  third  child  of  the  family,  died 
at  the  age  of  two  years.  Alice,  when  a  girl 
of  fifteen  summers,  went  to  Europe  and  for  three 
years  studied  music  under  the  eminent  instructors 
of  the  Old  Country.  When  very  young  she  had 
shown  marked  ability,  and  for  several  years  before 
traveling  abroad  had  studied  under  her  father's 
instruction.  Upon  her  return  to  America,  at  the 
age  of  eighteen,  she  was  off"ered  a  position  in 
Wellesley  College,  of  Boston,  where  she  taught 
seven  years.  She  then  became  the  wife  of  Alfred 
Emerson,  Professor  of  Archaeology  in  Cornell  Uni- 
versity, a  very  scholarly  and  renowned  man,  who 
has  traveled  extensively  in  foreign  lands.  They 
make  their  home  in  Ithaca,  N.  Y..  and  have  two 
daughters.  Edith  and  Gertude. 

Prof  Edwards  and  his  wife  are  members  of  the 
Unitarian  Church,  and  in  early  life  he  was  a 
Mason.  In  1877,  he  and  his  wife  went  to  Eu- 
rope to  place  their  daughter  in  the  Conser\-atory 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


307 


of  Music  in  Bavaria.  A  year  later,  Mrs.  Kd- 
warils  rfturiic<l  to  Aincriia  and  i-aiuc  West  to 
visit  her  soils,  who  had  Uicaleti  in  CliicaKo  some 
years  before.  The  I'rofessor  remained  in  Kurope 
with  his  daughter  for  three  >  ears,  and  then  they 
retunietl  to  their  native  land,  in  1.S80.  After  his 
retunj  he  residetl  two  years  at  Natick,  and  six 
years  at  Auhunidale.  Mass.,  and  in  iSSS  came  to 
Hinsdale,  where  he  has  since  made  his  lu)me. 
Allh<>U);h  now  seventy-four  years  of  age,  he  still 
teaches  music  to  a  limited  extent.  In  politics,  he 
Ls  a  Republican.  A  cultured  and  refined  gentle- 
man, plea-sanl  and  genial  in  manner.  Prof.  Ed- 
wards, although  his  residence  here  has  Ijeen  of 
.short  duration,  has  alrcatly  won  many  warm 
friends  throughout  DuPage  County,  and  he  and 
his  estimable  wife  have  the  high  regard  of  all. 


_=). 


^-^ 


:=_ 


(1  1'.  PAXTOX,  a  highly  respected  and  repre- 
I  tentative  fanner  of  Xaix;r\ille  Township, 
(2/  makes  his  home  on  section  6.  He  has  long 
been  numbered  among  the  citizens  of  DuPage. 
County,  almost  sixty  years  having  pa.ssed  since 
he  came  here.  He  is  familiar  with  its  history 
sinctthe  days  of  its  early  infancy,  and  has  wit- 
nessed almost  its  entire  growth  and  development, 
having  seen  the  changes  that  have  transformed  it 
from  an  almost  unbroken  tract  to  one  of  the  first 
counties  of  this  conmionwealth.  Mr.  Paxtonwas 
bom  near  Crawfordsville,  Ind.,  August  19,  1831. 
His  father,  Thomas  Paxton,  was  a  native  of 
Tennessee,  Iwrn  in  1783.  In  an  early  day  here- 
moved  to  Indiana,  locating  on  a  farm  near  Craw- 
forcLsville,  and  in  1835  he  came  to  this  county, 
settling  on  a  farm  which  is  now  the  home  of  our 
subject.  He  to<jk  up  the  land  from  the  Govern 
ment,  and  the  only  change  in  ownership  was  when 
he  deeded  it  to  hLs  son.  He  was  an  honored  ])io- 
iieer  and  a  man  of  sterling  worth.  His  death  oc- 
curred on  the  old  homestead  in  his  seventy-sixth 
year.     The  Paxton  family  is  of  Sct)tch  ilescent. 

The  mother  of  our  subject  Ixire  the  maiden  name 
of  Cynthia  S.  Potts,  and  was  l>orn  in  South  Caro- 
lina in  1790.      Her  father,  Jonathan  Potts,  was  a 


native  of  the  .same  Slate.  Her  death  <xH.urred  in 
this  county  in  her  sixty-fourth  year.  I'nto  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Paxton  were  Ixirn  twelve  children: 
Maria,  Margaret.  Rachel  Ann,  Eli/alxrth  and 
Thomas  Xewtoii,  all  dt-ceased;  Samuel,  <jf  Ames, 
Iowa:  Jonathan  H..  Robert  F.,  Cynthia,  Mary 
Melinda  and  William  H.,  all  deceasetl;  and  James 
P.,  who  com])leles  the  family. 

We  now  take  up  the  ix-rsf)nal  history  of  James 
Paxton,  who  was  only  four  years  of  age  when  he 
came  with  his  ])arents  to  DuPage  County.  He 
attended  a  sc1uh)1  which  was  taught  by  his  sister 
Margaret,  and  other  district  schools,  which  were 
held  in  a  log  schoolhnusc,  with  .slab  seals,  huge 
fireplace  and  two  small  windows.  Later,  he  was 
a  student  in  the  Granville  school.  He  earlj-  be- 
came familiar  with  all  the  duties  of  fann  life,  and 
remainc-d  at  home  with  hisfalher  until  tht;  latter's 
death,  caring  for  both  his  parents  until  they  were 
called  to  the  home  l>eyond.  He  was  first  married  in 
1856,  the  lady  of  his  choice  l)eing  Miss  Emeline 
McFarren,  who  died  leaving  one  son,  Frederick 
E.,  who  was  lK»rn  in  1.S57,  and  now  resides  on  a 
farm  in  Xapcrville  Township. 

In  1862,  Mr.  Paxton  was  united  in  marriage 
with  Lydia  Ann  Hums.  I'nto  them  was  l)om 
one  child,  but  both  the  mother  and  child  died. 
In  1869,  our  subject  was  united  in  marriage  with 
Xettie  M.  Holmsted,  a  native  of  Canada.  Four 
children  grace  this  marriage,  three  .sons  and  a 
daughter:  Xellie,  ijow  the  wife  of  Loran  L.  Hill, 
a  prominent  agriculturist  of  Xajierville  Town- 
ship; Edward  S.,  James  Iv  .iml  Knv  I'd.  all  of 
whom  are  at  hcjine. 

Mr.  Paxton  is  the  owner  of  a  fine  farm  of  two 
hundred  and  sixty-five  acres,  and  he  takes  a  just 
pride  in  the  fact  that  it  is  one  of  tlie  l)cst  tilled  in 
the  county.  In  1S7.S  he  erectetl  a  hantlsome 
brick  residence  at  a  cost  of  53.000.  He  has  built 
giKxl  bams  and  other  outbuildings  and  made  many 
improvements  wiiich  atUI  Imth  to  the  value  and 
attractive  a])iK-arance  of  the  place.  He  is  widely 
recognized  as  one  of  the  leading  and  sul>stantial 
farmers  of  the  community.  In  ]K)litics.  he  has 
followe<l  in  the  footsteps  of  his  father.  The 
latter  left  the  South  on  account  of  slavery.  His 
home  lxx.-ame  one  of  the  stations  on  the  famous 


3o8 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


"underground  railroad,  "  and  he  aided  many 
a  poor  negro  on  his  wa3' to  freedom.  Strongly  in 
favor  of  abolition,  when  the  Republican  party  was 
fonned  to  prevent  the  further  extension  of. slaven,-, 
he  at  once  joined  its  ranks,  and  its  principles  are 
now  supported  by  the  ballot  of  James  Paxton. 
Our  subject  holds  membership  with  the  Congre- 
gational Church  at  Big  Woods,  and  for  twent^^- 
five  years  has  served  as  Deacon.  He  takes  an 
active  part  in  church  and  benevolent  work,  is 
always  found  on  the  side  of  right,  and  his  influ- 
ence and  support  are  always  given  to  those  enter- 
prises calculated  to  upbuild  and  advance  the  best 
interests  of  the  connnunitj-.  That  his  career  has 
been  in  harmony  with  his  profession,  is  shown  by 
the  many  friends  he  has  in  the  county  which 
has  so  long  been  his  place  of  abode. 


'^'^^"T^l 


jILLIAM  A.  TOPE,  M.  D.,  a  well-known 
resident  of  Downer's  Grove,  and  a  leading 
young  physician  of  this  place,  is  a  native 
of  the  Buckeye  State.  He  was  born  in  New- 
Philadelphia,  July  12,  i860,  and  is  a  son  of  Jacob 
J.  and  Marj-  Jane  (Brown)  Tope.  The  father 
was  a  native  of  Ohio,  and  there  spent  his  entire 
life.  In  his  youth  he  learned  the  blacksmith's 
trade,  which  he  followed  as  a  means  of  li\-elihood 
throughout  his  bu.siness  career.  His  death  oc- 
curred in  1862,  at  the  age  of  forty-eight  years. 
His  parents  were  born  in  Ohio,  but  the  family  is 
of  German  origin.  The  mother  of  our  subject  is 
a  native  of  Ohio,  and  still  resides  at  the  old  home 
in  New  Philadelphia.  Her  parents  were  also  na- 
tives of  the  same  State,  and  were  of  English  de- 
scent. 

The  Doctor  is  the  youngest  in  a  family  of  three 
sons  and  three  daughters.  Two  of  the  number 
died  in  infancy.  He  remained  under  the  parental 
roof  and  attended  the  common  schools  until  sev- 
enteen years  of  age,  w^hen,  in  order  to  acquire  a 
better  education,  he  entered  Wittenberg  College 
in  Springfield,  Ohio,  where  he  remained  until 
twenty  years  of  age.  He  then  engaged  in  teach- 
ing school  and  reading  medicine  at  his  home  for 


three  years,  after  which  he  entered  the  Western 
Reser\-e  Medical  College  of  Cleveland,  Ohio, 
where  he  pursued  his  studies  for  three  years,  also 
doing  hospital  work,  as  interne,  a  part  of  that 
time.  Subsequentl}',  he  spent  one  year  in  study 
in  Rush  Medical  College,  of  Chicago,  from  which 
he  was  graduated  in  February,  18S7.  He  entered 
upon  his  professional  career  in  Oak  Park,  111., 
where  he  engaged  in  practice  with  his  brother  for 
six  months.  In  September  of  that  year,  he  came 
to  Downer's  Grove,  where  he  opened  an  office 
and  has  since  been  engaged  in  the  practice  of  his 
profession. 

On  the  25th  of  May,  1887,  the  Doctor  was  uni- 
ted in  marriage  with  Miss  Fannie  Weatherby,  of 
Port  Washington,  Ohio.  Two  children  grace  this 
union,  a  son  and  daughter,  William  A.  and  Mary 
Jane.  The  parents  are  leading  young  people  of 
this  community  and  hold  an  enviable  position  in 
social  circles. 

In  his  political  views,  Dr.  Tope  is  a  stanch  Re- 
publican. His  wife  is  a  member  of  the  Moravian 
Church,  and  he  belongs  to  the  Odd  Fellows' 
lodge  of  Downer's  Grove;  the  Beta  Theta  Pi,  a 
college  fraternity;  and  the  Alpha  Gamma  Chapter 
of  Springfield,  Ohio.  In  the  practice  of  his  pro- 
fession, he  is  meeting  with  excellent  .success,  and 
his  skill  and  ability  have  won  him  a  liberal  pa- 
tronage, which  might  well  be  the  envy  of  many 
an  older  practitioner.  He  is  a  popular,  genial 
gentleman,  and  aside  from  his  business  life  he  has 
a  large  circle  of  warm  friends. 


-^1. 


^+^ 


:=_ 


-^ 


^OHN  P.  WALLACE,  who  for  long  years  has 
I  been  identified  with  DuPage  County,  its  his- 
(2/  tory  and  its  upbuilding,  now  follows  farming 
on  section  19,  Downer's  Grove  Township.  This 
farm  he  entered  from  the  Government,  and  for 
nearly  half  a  centurj-  he  has  made  his  home 
thereon.  When  he  located  here,  the  Indians  were 
more  numerous  than  the  white  settlers,  the 
greater  part  of  the  land  was  .still  in  the  possession 
of  the  Government,  and  Chicago  was  the  nearest 
trading- post.     One  would  not  have  dreamed  that 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


309 


within  a  short  period  that  place  was  to  become  the 
metropolis  of  the  West,  and  this  county  would 
take  a  stride  forward  in  civilization  and  progress 
that  would  place  it  in  the  front  rank  amid  the 
counties  of  the  State. 

The  life  record  of  Mr.  Wallace  is  as  follows: 
He  was  bom  in  Graflon  County.  N.  H.,  Novem- 
ber 19,  1807.  and  is  a  son  of  Joseph  and  Sarah 
(Mclntyrei  Wallace.  His  father  was  a  native  of 
Scotland,  and  belonged  to  an  old  family  of  that 
countr>-.  He  was  a  farmer  by  occupation,  and 
throughout  life  followed  that  business.  John  P.  is 
one  of  four  sons  and  three  daughters.  He  was  Iwm 
and  reared  upon  his  father's  farm,  and  in  his  youth 
attendetl  the  subscription  schools,  to  which  he 
walked  from  one  to  two  miles.  He  early  became 
inured  to  the  arduous  labors  of  the  farm,  and  re- 
mained with  his  parents  until  he  had  attained  his 
majority,  when  he  Ixrgan  working  as  a  farmhand 
for  $10  per  month,  being  thus  employed  for  two 
years.  He  then  came  to  DuPage  County,  the 
year  1837  witnes.sing  his  arrival.  The  journey 
rt-as  made  by  way  of  the  Great  Lakes  to  Chicago, 
from  where  he  came  to  Downer"  s  Grove  Town- 
ship. A  few  years  later  he  took  up  eighty  acres 
of  Govenmient  land,  for  which  he  paid  Si. 25  pef 
acre,  and  ujxm  the  fann  which  he  there  devel- 
oped has  since  made  his  home.  AAkt  two  years 
he  was  joined  by  his  family. 

In  1.S34.  Mr.  Wallace  was  unitetl  in  marriage 
with  Miss  Mehitable  Harrington,  a  native  of  the 
Green  Mountain  State,  who  was  born  August  9. 
1812.  He  is  now  in  his  eighty-seventh  year, 
and  his  wife  in  her  eighty-second  year.  They 
are  the  oldest  couple  in  the  county,  and  for  al- 
most sixt>-  years  they  have  traveled  life's  jounjey 
together.  Their  marriage  has  been  blessed  with 
nine  children:  Austin,  who  of)erates  the  home 
farm;  Sarah,  deceased:  Garrett  J.:  Hattie,  de- 
ceased; Charlie,  w'lo  has  also  pas.sed  away; 
Emma:  James:  Alice  F.;  and  Hamdon.  de- 
ceased. 

In  politics,  Mr.  Wallace  has  been  a  stalwart 
Republican  since  the  organization  of  the  party,  and 
has  been  honored  with  the  offices  of  Con.stable 
and  School  Director.  He  and  his  wife  arc  faith- 
ful members  of  the  Baptist  Church.    This  worthy 


couple  upon  h'fe's  joume>'  have  shared  with  each 
other  its  joys  and  sorrows,  adversity  and  prosper- 
ity, and  in  their  declining  years  are  bles,setl  with 
a  consciousness  of  a  well-spent  past.  Mr.  Wal- 
lace has  made  his  own  way  in  the  world  since  a 
youth.  He  has  met  with  obstacles  and  difficul- 
ties, but  his  determination  has  overcome  these, 
and  his  diligence  Tind  perseverance,  together  with 
the  assistance  of  his  estimable  wife,  have  won  for 
him  a  cr)m|)etence. 


ILLIAM  LEWIS  GARY,  Cashier  of  Gar>- 
&  Wheaton's  Bank,  at  Wheaton.  is  the 
eldest  son  and  second  child  of  Charles 
Gar>-  ( .see  biography  elsewhere ) .  and  was  bom 
in  Pomfret.  Conn.,  July  7.  1828.  He  was  near 
the  completion  of  his  ninth  year  when  his  father 
came  with  his  family  to  DuPage  County,  and 
his  boyhood  waspa.ssed  at  Gar> 's  Mills,  in  Win- 
field  Township.  The  first  school  which  he  at- 
tended after  coming  West  was  taught  by  his 
aunt,  Mrs.  Laura  Rickard,  in  the  kitchen  of  his 
father's  house.  He  subsequently  attended  pub- 
lic school  in  a  log  building  at  Gar>'s  Mills  un- 
til he  was  seventeen  years  old.  He  continued  to 
assist  his  father  in  tilling  the  farm  and  operating 
a  sawmill  till  he  reached  his  majority,  when  he 
engaged  in  mercantile  business  at  the  same  jxiint. 
This  continued  until  the  ci>nstruction  of  the  rail- 
road and  location  of  stations  at  Wheaton  and 
Turner,  when  business  could  no  lotiger  be  profit- 
ably conductetl  at  Gary's  Mills.  He  then  be- 
came his  father's  partner  in  the  operation  of  the 
farm  and  sawmill,  and  so  continued  until  1874, 
when  he  niove<l  to  Wheaton  to  become  Cashier  of 
the  bank  of  Miner,  Gary  &  Webster.  When  the 
bank  changed  hands,  he  continued  in  the  same 
office,  which  he  still  fills.  The  confidence  of 
his  employers  is  indicatetl  by  the  fact  that  he  has 
sole  charge  of  the  bank.  hx>th  the  proprietors  hav- 
ing other  intere.sts  to  which  they  give  their  per- 
sonal attention.  Under  his  conser\ative  manage- 
ment the  liank  has  the  confidence  of  the  com- 
munity, and  is  doing  a  pros{H.-rous  business. 


3IO 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAI^  RECORD. 


Mr.  Gan-  was  married  June  15,  1851,  to  Miss 
Elizabeth  White,  a  native  of  Wiscasset,  Me.,  and 
daughter  of  Solomon  and  Joanna  (Hathorn) 
White,  who  were  born  in  Wiscasset  and  Wool- 
wich, Me.,  respectively.  Two  sons  were  given 
to  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Gar>-,  the  eldest,  John  E., 
being  deceased.  He  was  born  October  19,  1852, 
and  died  at  Ripon,  Wis.,  August  10,  1888,  leav- 
ing a  widow  and  one  son,  Ralph  Leroy.  William 
Everett,  born  August  15,  1868.  is  his  father's  as- 
sistant in  the  bank. 

Mr.  Gary  and  family  are  communicants  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church.  He  has  always 
been  a  supporter  of  the  principles  of  the  Republi- 
can part\-,  and  has  filled  several  positions  of  local 
trust.  For  ten  years  he  was  Township  School 
Treasurer,  has  served  as  Supervisor  and  Col- 
lector, and  was  President  of  the  Town  Council 
of  Wheaton  when  it  was  incorporated  as  a  city, 
and  superintended  its  division  into  wards.  He  is 
a  genial  and  social  gentleman,  and  as  a  business 
man  and  citizen  enjoys  the  respect  and  esteem  of 
the  connnunitv. 


^■^ 


[^ 


-S] 


r^AUL  RUDORF,  M.  D.,  is  a  young  medical 
Ly  practitioner  of  Fullersburg,  and  one  who  is 
[D  rapidly  winning  a  foremost  place  among  his 
professional  brethren.  His  skill  and  ability  have 
already  won  for  him  a  lucrative  patronage  and 
gained  him  the  confidence  and  regard  of  the  com- 
munity. The  Doctor  is  a  native  of  Germany. 
He  was  born  in  that  country-  in  1861,  being  a 
son  of  F.  A.  Rudorf,  and  is  the  only  member  of 
the  family  that  has  emigrated  to  America.  His 
literary  education  was  acquired  in  the  schools  of 
his  native  land. 

In  1880  the  Doctor  bade  adieu  to  home  and 
Fatherland,  for  he  had  detennined  to  try  his  for- 
tune in  the  New  World.  Crossing  the  Atlantic 
to  the  Ignited  States,  he  at  once  made  his  way 
westward  to  the  city  of  Chicago,  and  began  the 
study  of  medicine  in  Hahnemann  College,  from 
which  institution,  after  pursuing  a  thorough 
course  of  studj-,  h^  was  graduated  in  the  Class  of 


'85.  Being  now  prepared  to  enter  upon  the  prac- 
tice of  a  profe.ssion  which  he  had  determined  to 
make  his  life  work,  he  located  in  Fullersburg, 
DuPage  County,  and  at  once  opened  an  office  for 
the  reception  of  patrons.  It  was  not  long  before 
he  was  receiving  a  good  practice,  and  his  business 
has  steadily  increased. 

After  his  graduation,  Dr.  Rudorf  purchased  a 
plea.sant  little  home  in  Fullersburg,  and  was  uni- 
ted in  marriage  with  Miss  Caroline  Meyers,  a 
cultured  young  lady.  Two  children  have  been 
born  of  their  union,  Ottilie  and  Lydia,  and  are 
now  the  life  and  joy  of  their  parents'  home.  The 
Doctor  and  his  wife  are  people  of  prominence  in 
this  community,  where  they  have  a  wide  circle  of 
friends  and  acquaintances.  The  Rudorf  hou.se- 
hold  is  the  abode  of  warm-hearted  hospitality,  and 
good  cheer  always  abounds  there. 

In  his  political  views,  the  Doctor  is  independent, 
although  he  takes  an  active  interest  in  politics. 
By  his  ballot  he  supports  the  man  whom  he 
thinks  best  qualified  for  the  oSice,  regardless  of 
party  affiliations.  The  Doctor  has  ever  been  a 
close  student  of  his  profession,  and  keeps  abreast 
with  all  the  discoveries  and  theories  connected 
therewith.  He  has  been  extraordinarily  success- 
ful in  practice  and  has  gained  a  reputation  which 
might  well  be  envied  by  many  an  older  physician. 
Both  in  and  out  of  his  professional  character,  his 
fellow-townsmen  find  him  socially  agreeable,  and 
he  is  highly  regarded  in  the  community  where 
he  makes  his  home. 


1^+^^-= 


PIIGHO  SIMONSON,  a  druggist  of  Downer's 
\  /  Grove,  was  born  in  Chicago,  April  9,  1857, 
V  and  is  the  eldest  in  a  familj^  of  five  chil- 
dren, whose  parents  were  Charles  and  Catherine 
(Hearth)  Simonson.  The  father  was  a  native  of 
Denmark,  and  there  remained  until  middle  life. 
He  learned  the  trade  of  a  watch-maker,  which  he 
followed  until  1855,  when  he  crossed  the  broad 
Atlantic  to  America,  and  took  up  his  residence 
in  Chicago,  where  he  has  since  engaged  in  the 
jewelry-  business.      He  has  been   quite  successful 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


3" 


in  his  undertakings,  having  enjoyed  a  liberal 
trade.  He  is  ni>\v  al>i>nt  si.vty  years  of  age. 
His  wife,  who  was  also  a  native  of  Deuniark,  de- 
parted this  life  ill  Chicago  at  the  age  of  fifty-five. 

In  his  early  youth,  Mr.  Sinu)nst)n  of  this  sketch 
attendctl  the  common  scluxils.  At  the  age  of  ten 
he  began  learning  the  watch-inakcr's  trade  un- 
der his  father,  with  whom  he  worked  until  a 
young  man  of  eighteen  years.  He  then  went  to 
Europe  with  an  uncle,  who  was  a  trader  on  the 
seas,  and,  taking  up  his  residence  in  CojK'uhagen, 
he  there  spent  one  year,  working  as  a  watch 
maker.  He  al.so  .sf>ent  a  year  in  the  same  capac 
ity  in  Haltown,  and  a  similar  length  of  lime  in 
travel,  visiting  many  points  of  interest  through- 
out the  eountr\-.  On  the  expiration  of  that  jx.'- 
riiKl,  he  returned  to  his  native  land,  and  for  some 
time  was  employed  in  whole.sale  jewelr\  houses 
in  Chicago.  The  year  1SS2  witnes.sed  his  arrival 
in  Downer's  Grove,  where  he  optneil  a  jewelry 
store,  which  he  still  conducts.  He  also  owns  a 
half-interest  in  a  drug  store,  and  is  a  graduate  of 
a  school  of  pharmacy. 

In  Decemlier,  1884,  Mr.  Simonson  was  united 
in  marriage  with  Miss  Annie  J.  Ler\-eg,  of  Chi- 
cago, and  unto  them  have  been  l)orn  four  chil- 
dren: Eveline  A.,  Beulah  I)..  Guy  L.  and  Edna  I. 
The  family  circle  yet  remains  unbroken,  and  the 
parents  are  widely  and  favorably  known  in  this 
locality. 

Mr.  Simonson  has  iK-en  honoretl  with  the  office 
of  Town  Clerk  for  two  terms.  In  jwlitics,  he  is  a 
supixjrter  of  Republican  prineijiles.  For  a  time 
he  fillet!  the  position  of  Secretary  of  the  Building 
and  Loan  Association  of  Downer's  Grove,  but  was 
forced  to  resigti,  as  his  time  was  completely  occu- 
pied with  his  business  interests.  Socially,  he  is  a 
memlK-r  of  the  Odd  Fellows'  lodge,  the  lincamp- 
metit,  and  the  Woodmen's  lodge  of  this  place.  The 
Golden  Rule  has  In-en  the  motto  of  his  life,  and 
an  upright,  honorable  career  has  gained  for  him 
universal  confidence. 

When  a  mere  lad.  Mr.  Simonson  left  scho<}l  to 
learn  the  watchmaker's  trade,  but  through  busi- 
ness experience  and  obser\'ation  he  has  obtained 
a  u.seful  fund  of  practical  knowledge.  He  jxjs- 
sesses  an  obser\-ing  eye  and   retentive  'memory, 


I  and  the  three  years  spent  abroad  were  also  a 
1  source  of  education  to  him.  He  has  thus  iK-come 
j  well  infonne<l.  and  he  is  recognized  as  one  of  the 
I  wiile-awake,  enterprising  anil  progres.sive  young 
business  men  of  Downer's  (irove.  He  is  now 
j  doing  a  good  jewelry  and  drug  business,  and 
1   stands  high  in  the  comnnniity  in  which  he  lives. 


-^<, 


H^ 


t=- 


NI-IXRV  M.  LYMAN,  who  carries  on  general 
Uirming  on  section  5.  Downer's  tirove 
'I'own.sliip.  is  numbered  among  the  early 
settlers  of  DuFage  County,  having  witnessed  the 
greater  part  of  its  growtli  and  npl>uilding.  while 
with  the  work  of  dcvelojinu-nl  and  i)rogress  lit- 
has  ever  l>een  prominently  identified.  He  was 
born  in  Vernon,  Oneida  County,  N.  Y.,  October 
27,  1821,  and  is  a  son  of  Rev.  Orange  and  Marcia 
<  Dewey)  Lyman.  The  father  was  a  minister,  and 
in  the  towns  where  the  family  live<l  Henry  ac- 
quired his  education,  completing  the  same  by 
study  in  the  academy  at  I'ainesville,  Ohio.  In 
November.  1S38.  parents  and  children  bade  adieu 
to  the  Buckeye  Slate,  and  by  team  started  west- 
ward. For  three  weeks  ilie  journey  lasted,  and 
they  drove  yver  the  ground  where  the  ' '  White 
City"  (World's  Fair)  now  stands,  and  stopped 
in  Chicago  for  a  short  time. 

In  the  winter  of  18^8-39,  Henry  Lyman  taught 
.school  in  Hadley.  Will  County,  for  515  jHrr month. 
He  boarded  around  anionic  the  scholars,  and 
this  occasioned  him  a  walk  of  from  one  to  three 
miles  to  the  sch(M)lliouse.  In  the  spring  of  1839, 
his  father  made  a  claim,  and  Henry  came  to  the 
farm  on  which  he  now  lives,  for  a  ]>art  of  the  old 
homestead  has  since  come  into  his  p<i.s.session.  The 
claim,  .situated  a  mile  north  of  Downer's  Grove, 
com]>riscd  four  huntlre<l  acres  of  land,  on  which 
was  a  small  log  cabin.  Only  ten  acres  had  l)een 
broken,  and  father  and  .sons  at  once  turneil  their 
attention  to  the  development  of  the  farm.  Our 
subject  remained  on  the  old  home.steatl  until  the 
winter  of  1 84 1 ,  when  he  went  back  to  Will  County 
and  taught  in  the  olii  .scIumiI  where  he  was  first 
employed.     A  man  of  that  connnunitv'  iiad  ridden 


312 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


to  Mr.  Lyman's  home  on  horseback  in  order  to 
secure  his  sen-ices,  but  practically  since  first  tak- 
ing up  his  residence  upon  the  farm  our  subject 
has  here  resided.  He  broke  the  prairie  with  ox- 
teams,  and  did  his  trading  in  Chicago,  where  he 
also  hauled  his  grain,  for  there  were  only  three  or 
four  houses  in  Downer's  Grove.  He  now  owns 
one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  of  valuable  land  and 
carries  on  general  farming  and  stock-raising. 

The  lady  who  bears  the  name  of  Mrs.  Lyman 
and  has  long  been  the  faithful  companion  and 
helpmate  of  her  husband  was  in  her  maidenhood 
Lovancia  Pease.  Two  children  were  born  unto 
them,  Walter  C.  and  Sarah  E.  The  former  still 
resides  upon  the  old  home  farm,  and  is  a  well- 
known  agriculturist  of  this  community. 

Since  the  organization  of  the  Republican  part}-, 
Mr.  Lyman  has  been  one  of  its  stanch  supporters, 
but  has  never  been  an  aspirant  for  official  honors. 
\\'ith  the  growth  of  the  county,  however,  he  has 
been  largely  identified.  He  helped  establish,  sur- 
ve}-,  and  lay  out  a  great  many  of  the  roads  of  this 
township,  and  has  done  much  in  the  interests  of 
the  schools  of  the  community.  He  is  a  member 
of  the  Congregational  Church,  contributes  liber- 
ally to  its  support,  and  manifests  a  commendable 
interest  in  everj-thing  pertaining  to  the  welfare  of 
the  community-  and  its  upbuilding. 


(TOHX  DAVIS  ACKERMAX  was  an  honored 
I  pioneer  of  DuPage  County.  He  was  born  in 
(2/  New  York,  October  24,  1799,  and  died  in 
Milton  Township  in  September,  1S59,  respected 
b}'  all  who  knew  him.  His  parents  were  both 
natives  of  Holland,  and  his  father  died  when  John 
was  only  about  nine  years  of  age.  Our  subject 
grew  to  manhood  in  the  Buckeye  State,  and  there 
married  Miss  Lurania  Churchill.  In  1S34  he 
emigrated  westward  with  his  family,  and  took 
up  his  residence  in  Milton  Township,  DuPage 
County.  There  were  then  but  two  houses  be- 
tween his  home  and  Chicago,  which  at  that  time 
was  a  mere  village.  He  made  a  .squatter's  claim, 
which  he  afterward  purchased,  and  there  contin- 


ued to  reside  until  his  death,  which  occurred  in 
1859.  He  devoted  his  energies  to  farming,  and 
transformed  the  tract  of  wild  prairie  into  rich  and 
fertile  fields,  which  yielded  to  him  a  good  income. 
He  was  a  worthy  pioneer,  and  in  the  early  daj-s 
aided  largely  in  the  upbuilding  and  development 
of  the  county. 

Mrs.  Ackerman  long  sur\-ived  her  husband, 
and  passed  awaj-  on  the  31st  of- March,  1893,  at 
the  age  of  ninety-one  years,  one  month  and  six- 
teen days.  In  the  family  were  five  children,  as 
follows:  W'inslow:  Elbj-ron;  Miles;  Erastus,  now 
of  Mather,  W'is. ;  and  Alonzo.  The  parents  were 
both  members  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 
and  were  worthy  people,  who  well  merited  the 
high  regard  in  which  they  were  held. 

Winslow  Ackerman,  who  now  resides  in  Glen 
Ellyn,  came  with  the  family  on  their  removal 
westward  in  1834.  He  was  bom  in  Onondaga 
County,  X.  Y.,  July  21,  1826,  and  for  sixty  years 
has  resided  in  DuPage  County.  He  aided  in  de- 
veloping and  improving  the  old  homestead,  and 
after  arriving  at  man's  estate,  he  purchased  a 
farm  near  the  old  place,  which  he  still  owns  In 
connection  with  the  cultivation  of  his  land,  he 
also  operated  a  threshing-machine  for  thirt3-four 
seasons.  About  1888  he  removed  to  Glen  Ellyn, 
where  he  has  since  resided.  He  is  now  living 
retired,  resting  in  the  enjoyment  of  the  fruits  of 
his  former  toil. 

On  the  2 2d  of  August,  1849,  Mr.  Ackerman 
was  united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Permelia,  daugh- 
ter of  Joseph  and  Catherine  Holmes.  She  was  a 
native  of  Xew  York,  and  came  with  her  parents 
to  the  West  during  her  girlhood.  To  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Ackerman  were  born  four  children:  Eben, 
Lorena,  Perr\-.  and  Adella,  who  became  the  wife 
of  Eugene  House,  and  is  now  deceased. 

In  his  political  views,  Mr.  Ackerman  has  been 
a  Republican  since  the  organization  of  the  part\-, 
supporting  each  of  its  Presidential  nominees  since 
casting  his  first  vote  for  John  C.  Fremont.  He 
and  his  wife  are  members  of  the  Free  Methodist 
Church.  He  is  numbered  among  the  honored 
pioneer  .settlers  of  DuPage  County,  having  lived 
here  since  the  da>s  when  the  Indians  were  far 
more    numerous   than    the    white   settlers,  when 


PORTRAIT. AND  BIOGRAI'IIICAL    RECORD. 


(ictr  and  othvr  wild  >;anic  were  vt-n- plentiful,  and 
hunting  txnild  Ik;  indulged  in  to  a  great  extent. 
Mr.  Ackemian  \va.s  a  successful  sportsman,  and 
otU-n  made  $I.S  jkt  day  in  trapping.  He  has 
watched  the  entire  growth  and  development  of 
this  CDmmunity,  and  has  ever  borne  a  prominent 
part  in  its  advancement  His  name  is  in.sei>ara- 
hly  ct>nnectetl  with  the  histor>  of  the  county,  and 
we  gladly  give  the  record  of  his  life  a  place  in 
this  volume. 


nOHX  WEST,  dealer  in  drugs  and  general 
I  raerchan<iise  in  Turner,  was  lx>ni  on  the  2,sth 
0  of  SeptemUr.  1S2S.  in  Shepton  Mallet.  Som- 
ersetshire. England,  and  is  a  son  of  Joseph  and 
Sarah  1  Gaite  ■  West,  who  were  natives  of  the  same 
country.  They  had  but  two  children,  Dr.  J.  E. 
and  our  subject.  The  paternal  grandfather.  Joseph 
West,  reared  a  family  of  seven  children,  and  diet! 
in  England  at  an  advanced  age,  as  did  also  the 
matenial  grandfather.  The  family  for  many  gen- 
erations had  l)een  wcx)l  maimfacturers,  and  Joseph 
West.  Sr..  followed  the  same  pursuit.  The  chas- 
ing of  the  European  wars  acting  disastrously  on 
the  woolen  interest,  he  gathered  together  the  rem- 
nant of  his  fortune,  and  with  his  family  emigrated 
to  the  I'nited  States.  His  first  venture  proving 
unsuccessful,  he  went  to  Mexiai,  but  the  unsettled 
condition  of  llie  countn  causctl  him  to  retrace 
his  steps,  and  in  the  autumn  of  iS.^.^  he  penna- 
uently  locateti  in  the  flourishing  manufacturing 
village  of  Oriskany,  N.  Y. 

Our  subject  was  a  Ijalxr  at  the  time  of  the  emi- 
gration to  the  New  World.  He  says  his  first  rec- 
ollections are  of  making  mud  pie>  in  the  public 
square  of  Manayunk.  I'a.  Between  the  ages  of 
five  and  nine  years  he  attende<l  s«.-h<M>l.  studying 
the  old  Welister's  Elementary  Sixrlling  book  an«l 
DaboUs  Arithmetic,  unless  he  could  e>ade  such 
work  by  playing  "hooky."  This  latter  filially 
occupieil  s<j  much  of  his  time,  that  his  father 
placed  him  in  the  woolen  factorx ,  where  lie  re 
mained  for  eight  years,  working  from  five  o'clock 
in  the moniing  until  ^ix  i"  ibi-  i\i-iiim;,  and  nften 


until  Mine      <*tiil\  thirty  inin«te>  «■ 
meals  and    return   to  work-      I'or  >; 

weary  hours  of  labor  he  nceivcd  the  munifiitrtit 
sum  of  {.1.2s  t"5.<  .S"  I'er  week— the  latter  only 
for  the  Ixst  two  year>.  Children  empl<>.\e<l  111  the 
factory  were  often  obligetl  to  wade  a  mile  Ihnmgh 
deep  snow  in  the  dark  of  the  morning  in  oriler  to 
Ik.-  at  their  i)osl>  in  time  There  were  but  two 
holidays  in  the  year.  New  Year's  Day  ami  Fourth 
of  July  .Thanksgiving  and  Chri>tiii  1  <  only 

in   name.      On   reaching   the  age'  m     Mr. 

West  was  for  six  months  pl.icvtl  un<ler  the  care 
and  instniction  of  a  I'n-"  '     and 

later  s]K.-nt  a  year  in  \\  i  :iy.    to 

which  he  walked  a  distance  of  three  miles. 

In  1S47,  our  subject  entereil  the  i-onnting-room 
of  S.  N.  Dexter,  xs  l)«¥)k  keejKrr  and  manager  of 
a  general  store,  and  lias  since  iKren  continuously 
connected  with  mercantile  pursuits  There  he 
remaineil  three  years,  and  out  of  the  5150  received 
for  the  first  year's  service,  having  no  board  to 
jmy.  he  saved  Juxj.50.  In  1.S4.S  he  made  his 
first  investment  in  shares  of  stoik  in  the  Oalena 
&  Chicago  Union  Railroad,  at  the  time  when  not 
more  than  a  mile  of  the  ri«d  was  built  He  U 
probably  the  only  one  of  the  original  suWrilnrrs 
to  that  road  who  still  retains  possession  of  bis 
sKxrk  In  1S50.  Mr.  West  visitetl  England  and 
the  Great  l\xi)osition.  and  in  iS^r  enitiarked  in 
merchandising  in  Oriskany 

On  the  22(1  of  OctolKr  of  that  \(.-ar.  our  subject 
married  Miss  ElizalKth  Allison,  daughter  of 
Robert  and  Sarah  1  Briggs  1  Alli.son.  natives  of 
Leetls.  England.  Five  children  have  U-en  l>om 
unto  them,  of  whom  one  son  died  in  infancy. 
John  A.,  of  Turner,  marrietl  Frank  M.  Shaw, 
of  Boston,  and  they  have  two  sons,  Joseph  M. 
and  Paul  F.  Carrie  is  the  wife  of  James  T  Ibis- 
ford,  of  Turner,  by  whom  she  l»as  three  children. 
William  F..  Mary  and   1  "  Sarah  dietl  in 

iH()i :  and  Annie  is  the  w  ireiice  H.  Brad- 

ley, of  Turner.     They  have  one  s«Jn.  Allison  W. 

In  iHs.S.  Mr.  Wi-st  was  attackiil  with  the  v;old 
fever,  and.  g«>iiig  to  California,   engage*!   111  mm 
ing  for  a  year  witli  gootl  success.     In  the  fall  of 
1856.  he  went  t.  '    rr\  .  Ill  .  and  in  the  fol- 

lowing   spring    ;  11   Turner    where  he  has 


314 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


engaged  in  merchandising  continuoush'  since. 
He  is  recognized  as  one  of  the  prominent  and  in- 
fluential citizens  of  thecomnninit}-,  and  was  called 
upon  to  serve  as  Town  Clerk  for  fifteen  years, 
and  Postmaster  for  eight  j-ears.  His  public 
duties  he  has  ever  discharged  with  promptness 
and  fidelity  that  ha\-e  won  him  the  commendation 
of  all  concerned.  Himself  and  wife  were  reared 
in  the  Episcopal  Church,  but  are  now  members 
of  the  Congregational  Church.  In  politics,  he  is 
a  supporter  of  the  Republican  party.  Born  in 
England,  he  has  lived  in  California  and  in  the 
extreme  eastern  and  western  and  central  portions 
of  this  countr>-.  His  life  has  been  eventful  to  a 
certain  degree,  but  no  matter  where  he  has  lived 
his  career  has  always  been  an  upright  one,  worthy 
of  emulation. 


_=] 


~S) 


^■^ 


C=" 


NEXRV  L.  BUSH  was  for  many  years  a  lead- 
ing citizen  of  Downer's  Grove,  in  fact  was 
one  of  her  native  sons,  and  this  work  would 
be  incomplete  without  the  record  of  his  life.  He 
was  born  on  the  3d  of  Februars-,  1840,  being  a  son 
of  Edwin  A.  and  Xancy  C.  (Stanley)  Bush.  The 
father,  a  native  of  New  York,  came  to  this  county 
when  a  young  man,  the  year  of  his  arrival  being 
1835.  From  the  Government  he  entered  land, 
and  upon  the  farm  which  he  there  de\-eloped  he 
made  his  home  until  his  death,  which  occurred  at 
the  age  of  twentj'-five  years.  He  came  of  an  old 
New  England  family,  which  at  a  \er\-  earl\-  day 
was  founded  in  America.  The  mother  of  our  sub- 
ject was  born  in  Harford,  Pa.,  and  in  this  county 
was  called  to  her  final  rest  at  the  age  of  sixty- 
nine  years. 

No  event  of  special  importance  occurred  dur- 
ing the  childhood  and  youth  of  our  subject,  which 
were  quietly  passed  upon  his  father's  farm  and 
in  faithful  attendance  at  the  common  schools, 
where  he  acquired  his  education.  On  the  27th  of 
August,  1865.  he  was  united  in  marriage  with 
Miss  CaUa  E.  Belden,  a  native  of  Do\vner's 
Grove  Township,  and  a  daughter  of  Nathan  A. 
and  Fannie    (Randall;   Belden.     Her  father  was 


bom  in  the  Empire  State,  and  on  emigrating 
westward,  in  1844,  located  in  DuPage  County, 
where  he  purcha.sed  a  small  tract  of  land  and 
built  a  blacksmith  .shop.  In  his  youth  he  had 
learned  that  trade,  which  he  followed  until  his 
death,  which  occurred  at  the  age  of  forty-four 
j'ears.  He  was  of  Scotch  extraction.  His  wife, 
who  was  also  bom  in  New  York,  is  still  living,  at 
the  age  of  seventy -five  years. 

Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Bush  were  born  two  sons. 
Guy  L.  is  a  well-educated,  wide-awake  and  enter- 
prising ycung  man,  who  is  an  accountant  in  Chi- 
cago. He  owns  an  interest  in  the  leading  drug 
store  of  Downer's  Grove,  and  is  at  present  the 
youngest  man  ever  elected  to  the  position  of  Yil- 
lage  Trustee.  M.  King,  the  younger  brother,  is 
now  employed  in  the  Chicago  oflSce  of  the  freight 
department  of  the  Chicago,  Burlington  &  Quincy 
Railroad,  and  is  a  universal  favorite  among 
Downer's  Grove  people. 

Mr.  Bush  was  always  a  stanch  Republican  and 
took  quite  an  active  interest  in  politics,  doing  all 
in  his  power  to  insure  the  success  of  his  partj-. 
He  represented  his  district  on  the  Board  of  Equal- 
ization of  Taxes  for  eight  years,  and  was  Assessor 
of  his  township  for  seven  years,  proving  a  capable 
and  faithful  officer.  A  self-made  man,  by  well- 
directed  efforts,  perseverance  and  industry-,  he 
worked  his  way  steadily  upward  and  acquired  a 
handsome  competency.  He  was  called  to  his 
final  rest  on  the  15th  of  May,  1892,  at  the  age  of 
fiftv-two  years,  and  his  remains  were  interred  in 
Oak  Hill  Cemeten,-.  He  had  a  large  circle  of 
friends,  and  his  death  was  deeply  mourned. 


^■^ 


"^ 


[^^ 


■JJEORGE  PERRIN  GARY,  eldest  .son  of  Jude 
_  P.  Gar\-,  was  born  in  Winfield  Township, 
^_J  DuPage  County,  111.,  December  13,  1838. 
He  attended  the  district  school  at  Warrenville 
until  he  was  sixteen  years  old,  and  then  entered 
Wheaton  College  and  completed  one-half  the 
course.  Returning  to  the  farm,  he  alternated  be- 
tween teaching  school  in  winter  and  fanning  dur- 
ing the  summer  until   1861.     In  the  last-named 


PORTRAIT  AND  UIOGRAnilCAL   RKCORD. 


^'5 


year  he  cros,s«.-<i  the  plains  tn  Caliliiniia,  and  sjK:nt 
three  years  in  that  State,  farniiny;  near  StiK-kton 
and  milling  at  Oakland.  He  then  retunieil  to 
the  fann  in  Winfield  and  remained  twvlve  \ears. 
In  iS(>6  he  enj;aKeil  in  the  nianul'actnre  of  cheese 
at  Wheatoii.  and  subsequently  openeil  a  ware- 
hiuise  fur  handling;  grain  and  o>aI,  in  jwrtni-rsliip 
with  his  hnither-in-law.  Dr.  A1fre<l  Waterman. 
In  1868  he  dispose*!  of  this  business,  and  since 
the  1st  «>f  Dei-eml>er  in  that  year  he  has  In-en 
employe*!  in  tlie  i)ffioe  of  the  Clerk  <if  the  Sii]>eri(ir 
Court  of  Cook  County,  at  Chica>;" 

Mr.  Gar>-  has  l>een  leader  of  the  MiUuKiist 
Church  choir  at  W'heaton  for  sexcral  years,  and  a 
memlier  of  the  Republican  j^arty  .since  its  organiza- 
tion in  1S56.  He  is  a  Roval  Arch  Mason,  and  a 
memlier  of  the  Knights  of  Pythias  ami  Iii<lei>en<l- 
ent  Order  of  Odd  Fellows. 

On  the  17th  of  Ma\-,  i.sfti.  Mr.  Cary  married 
Miss  Jcannette  Hannah  Bn)wn.  who  was  l)orn 
near  Niles,  Cook  County,  III.,  and  is  a  daughter 
of  Stephen  and  Ph<el>e  Dean  (  Caton  1  Brown,  pio- 
neers of  this  region.  Mr.  Hrown  was  a  native  of 
Mas.sacliusetts,  and  died  when  Mrs.  (iary  was  a 
small  child.  His  wife  was  Ihihi  near  I'tica.  X.  V., 
and  was  a  sister  of  the  venerable  ex -Chief  Ju.slice 
of  Illinois.  John  Dean  Caton.  Two  sons  and  a 
daughter  were  given  to  Mr.  fiar\-  and  wife.  The 
latter,  named  Margaret  Dean.  die<l  when  two 
years  old .  The  sons  are  Alfred  Caton  and  George 
I^throp.  Alfre<l.  who  is  Retx-iving  Teller  of  the 
Merchants'  L«ian  iv:  Trust  Company  Hank,  Chi- 
cago, rnarrie*!  Harriet  Childs,  and  has  a  daugh- 
ter, I^ura.  George  married  Nettie  Ix-Ro>  .  and  is 
Chief  Clerk  in  the  Au<litor's  office  of  the  Chicago 
&  Northern  Pacific  Railroad. 


=*^-|-+-^^ 


[Tl.l.loT  WHIPPI.K.  whose  anc-estors  came 
1^  from  Connecticut,  settling  in  Waterford.  Vt.. 
^^  s(X)n  after  the  Revolutionary  War.  is  Pro- 
fes.s<jr  of  Sticial  Science  and  I'edagtigy  in  Whe:iton 
College.  His  grandfather,  Daniel  Whipple,  cul- 
tivale<!  a  small  fann  in  Waterft>rd.  His  father, 
Ira  Whipple,  married   Phidelia  I)a\is    ami  settled 


in  St.  John.sbury ,  \'t  .  where  l^lliot  was  born 
SeptemlK-r  11,  1842.  The  family  remove*!  to 
Columbia,  N.  H..  when  he  was  seven  yearn  of 
age  He  was  c<lumte<l  in  the  district  schools 
of  that  town  aiul  in  Colebrojk  Academy.  N.  H.. 
finishing  his  pre|>anititm  for  cullege  at  Orford 
Academy.  N.  H.,  and  graduating  at  Dartmouth 
College,  N.  H..  in  18^4.  He  Itegan  teaching  in 
district  schtjols  in  1858,  and  earned  a  part  of  the 
money  nectssar\-  for  college  expenses  by  teaching 
><«.liiK)l  each  winter. 

Mr.  Whipple  was  married  to  Samantha  John- 
viii.  of  Stratford.  N.  H..  in  186-5.  Her  father, 
I-llisha  Johnson,  was  a  farmer,  whose  ancestors 
were  from  Connecticut,  and  settled  in  Stratford 
alK>ut  1790.  She  was  eilucated  in  the  district 
schools  and  at  I.anca.ster  Aoadeinv  N  M  .md 
St.  JohnsbuTA  Academy,  \t 

Mr.  and  Mrs  Whipple  were  eiigagi-d  in  teaih 
ing  in  Massachusetts  from  1S64  to  ixO',  and  re- 
moved to  Wlie-aton.  III.,  in  the  latter  >ear.  when 
their  eldest  child,  Harlan  W.  Wlii]>pU ,  was  alxjut 
two  years  of  age.  Mr.  Whii>ple  wa-.  employed  as 
Principal  of  the  preparatory  department  in  Whea- 
ton  C*)llege.  ami  afterward  Ixxiune  1'rofes.sor  of 
Natural  Sciences  in  the  s;une  institution.  In 
1869  was  bfini  their  only  daughter,  Maud  Whip- 
j)le.  who  graduate*!  from  the  clas«.ii-al  i-ourse  of 
Wheaton  Cf>llege  in  i8yj.  and  l>et.amc  teacher  of 
English  and  stenography  in  the  same  institution 
in  189;^.      Mr.  Whii)ple  resigiK-d  his  pi  ip 

in    187;,  and    for  fifteen   years   was  a'  in 

Wheaton.  Iteing  constantly  engaged  in  teaching 
in  other  institutions  in  Illiunis.  Indiana  and  New 
Haini»shire.  In  ixs-  he  returne*!  to  Wheaton  to 
lake  his  old  jxisitiou  as  Professor  of  Natural 
Sciences,  wliich  he  liehl  until  the  summer  of  1893, 
when  he  was  transferre<l  to  the  in  \vl\  >  rented 
chair  <jf  S*Kial  Sciemx- 

Profes.sor  Wliij)ple  has  don.  :k 

in  county  institutes  in  variou-  :>. 

Indiana.  New  Hampshire  and  New  Jersey,  and 
he  is  theautlior  of  "  .\nimal  .\  id 

of  teaching /o  "logy.      He  reci  ii 

er's  certificate  in  Illinois  in    1875,  and   a    (ir»t 
grade  certifii-ate  in  the  r:i  "    -'.on  in  i8.S5 

Harlan    W     Whipple  .1    4t    Willwui* 


3i6 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


College,  in  Massachusetts,  in  1888,  and  was  mar- 
ried to  Emma  E.  Gould,  of  Andover,  Mass.,  in 
December,  1890.  To  them  was  born  a  .son, 
Harold  C.  Whipple,  while  they  were  temporarily 
residing  in  Tacoma,  Wa.sh.,  in  February-,  1892. 


€-f^ 


13 


t^- 


EHARLES  MERRITT  VanBUREN,  who 
is  extensivelj'  engaged  in  the  breeding  of 
fine  horses  on  his  farm  in  Milton  Township, 
and  who  carries  on  a  liver\-  stable  in  Glen  Ellyn, 
is  a  native  of  the  Empire  State.  He  was  born  in 
Rochester,  on  the  3d  of  May ,  i  S64,  and  comes  of 
a  family  of  Holland  descent  on  his  father's  side. 
His  parents,  Peter  H.  and  Mar>-  E.  (Hoag)  Van 
Buren,  were  both  born  near  Rochester.  The 
mother  was  a  daughter  of  David  Hoag,  a  native 
of  Scotland. 

Charles  M.  Van  Buren  was  brought  to  the 
West  by  his  parents  when  a  year  old,  the  family 
settling  in  Elgin,  111.  He  attended  the  public 
schools  of  that  city,  where  he  acquired  his  educa- 
tion, and  at  the  age  of  sixteen  began  life  for  him- 
self as  a  farm  laborer.  At  the  age  of  twelve 
years  he  began  dealing  in  horses,  for  which  busi- 
ness he  had  a  natural  aptitude.  \\'hen  a  young 
man  of  eighteen  he  went  to  Milwaukee,  Wis., 
where  he  was  employed  by  the  Citj-  Railroad 
Company  for  four  years  in  the  different  capacities 
of  street-car  driver,  conductor  and  foreman. 

On  the  expiration  of  that  period,  Mr.  Van 
Buren  returned  to  Illinois,  and  made  a  location  in 
DuPage  County.  It  was  in  July,  1889,  that  he 
took  up  his  residence  near  Glen  Elh'n,  and  pur- 
chased a  farm,  which  he  still  carries  on.  He  is  a 
successful  agriculturist,  and  his  well-tilled  fields 
indicate  to  the  passer-by  the  thrift  and  enterprise 
of  the  owner.  In  the  fall  of  1893  he  purchased  a 
livery  stable  in  Glen  Ellyn,  and  is  now  carr},-ing 
on  business  along  that  line.  From  a  very  early 
age  he  has  always  dealt  in  horses,  and  during 
the  past  eight  years  he  has  handled  over  three 
hundred  horses.  His  farm  is  devoted  chiefly  to 
the  breeding  and  raising  of  honses,  and  his  stable 
contains   some   fine   thoroughbreds.     He   has    a 


reputation    for   handling   only    the   be.st,  and   is 

widely  known  as  a  dealer  in  fine  stock. 

On  the  28th  of  May.  1885,  Mr.  Van  Buren  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Clara  Wright,  a 
daughter  of  Philip  Wright,  of  Milwaukee,  Wis., 
in  which  city  the  lady  was  born.  Three  children 
have  been  born  of  their  union,  .sons,  Franklin, 
Arthur  and  Willard,  and  the  family  circle  yet  re- 
mains unbroken. 

Besides  his  home  in  Glen  Ellyn,  Mr.  Van 
Buren  owns  con.siderable  real  estate  in  that  vil- 
lage and  elsewhere,  for  he  has  made  judicious  in- 
vestments in  land.  In  politics,  he  is  a  supporter 
of  the  Republican  party,  and  warmly  advocates 
its  principles,  doing  all  in  his  power  to  promote 
its  growth  and  in.sure  its  success.  He  takes  com- 
mendable interest  in  everything  pertaining  to  the 
welfare  of  the  community,  and  is  regarded  as  one 
of  the  leading  citizens  of  Glen  Ellvn. 


^+^ 


c=_ 


■^ 


|ILLIAM  H.  WAGNER,  one  of  DuPage 
County's  most  useful  citizens,  whose  suc- 
ce.ss  in  life  may  be  attributed  to  his  frugal, 
temperate  and  industrious  habits,  located  here 
in  1852,  and  is  now  the  oldest  resident  of  Glen 
Ellyn.  He  is  a  .son  of  Joseph  and  Mary  A.  ( Hoff- 
man)  Wagner.  His  paternal  grandfather,  Tobias 
Wagner,  was  a  soldier  of  the  W'ar  of  18 12.  The 
latter  was  the  eldest  son  of  Rev.  Christian  \^'ag- 
ner,  a  native  of  Germany,  who  preached  the  first 
sermon  ever  delivered  by  a  Lutheran  minister  in 
the  city  of  Philadelphia.  He  was  afterward  killed 
while  defending  his  adopted  countr\-  in  the  Revo- 
lutionarj'  War. 

Joseph  Wagner  was  born  in  Schuylkill  County, 
Pa.,  January  6,  1806,  and  died  at  Glen  Ellyn, 
September  2,  1887.  His  wife  died  there  Novem- 
ber 5,  1880,  aged  over  sevent3'-five  years.  Her 
father,  Michael  Hoffman,  was  born  at  Albany, 
N.  Y.,  in  1759.  Her  mother.  Mary  Hoffman, 
was  born  in  Pennsylvania  in  1764.  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Joseph  Wagner  were  the  parents  of  eleven  chil- 
dren: John  H.,  a  frrmer  near  Garnett.  Kan.; 
William  H.,  the  subject  proper  of  this  sketch; 
Matthias  H.;  Joseph  H.;  Farosina,  who  died  in 


JOHN    RUMBLE 


REBECCA  RUMBLE 


PORTRAIT  AND  HIlK'.RAI'HICAI.    RHCORD 


}3i 


infancy:   Man   k  .  ii<>\\  the  wife  ■>!"  \V    (>    W    ' 
residing  at  L«misvillr.  Ky.;  Klia>  II   :  Al;ini.., 
H.:  Tobias  S.    H.;    Jacob  J.  H  ;  ami  Calluruic 
L..  who  dictl  in  infancy. 

Josejih  Wagner  came  to  l>ul'a>:e  Cininty  in 
1S54.  Hv  purchased  a  fami  in  Milton  Township, 
where  he  rcsidetl  until  hi>  death.  He  and  hi.s 
wife  Wert:  devout  adherenl.s  of  the  Lutheran  faith 
He  was  physically  strong  and  active.  e\en  in  old 
ajie.  an»l  always  uiauifeste<I  a  deep  interest  in 
public  affairs.  Hi^  first  I're.sideutial  Udlot  was 
cast  for  Andrew  Jackson,  and  his  last  for  (trover 
Cleveland. 

William  H.  Wagner  was  \n>n\  near  Hamburgh. 
Berks  Countj-,  Pa..  Septemlier  17.  i&ig.  At  the 
age  of  nineteen  years  he  l>e>;an  to  learn  the  trade 
of  blacksmith.  Soon  afler  coming  to  tliis  aiuntv . 
in  1S52.  as  stated  above,  he  opened  a  shop  at 
Newton's  Station,  now  Glen  Ellyn.  This  shop 
he  continued  to  carry  on  for  about  forty  years. 
In  1S87  he  opened  a  store,  which  he  still  carries 
on  with  the  a.s.sistance  of  his  son.  He  also  owns 
ctmsiderable  valuable  real  estate  in  and  near  the 
village.  Although  his  capital  on  coming  to  the 
county  consisted  only  of  his  two  strong  anns  and 
a  determine*!  will,  he  has  l)econie  a  sutistantial 
business  man.  in  addition  to  rearing  and  e<lucating 
a   large  family. 

(Jn  the  7th  of  August.  1S51,  Mr.  Wagner 
was  married  to  I.^vina  S.,  daughter  of  Jona- 
than and  Susanna  1  Shapell '  Weidman.  Mrs. 
Wagner  is  aLsua  native  of  Hamburgh.  Pa.  .She  is 
one  of  a  £amily  of  twelve  children,  her  parents 
Ijeing  also  of  German  descent.  She  has  Ixmie 
her  husband  ten  children.  Fanisina  die<l  inchilil 
hood:  Mary  S.  is  now  Mrs.  Hubley.  of  Marinette 
Wis.:  Norah  l»ecame  Mrs.  Harnden.  of  Barrinj; 
ton.  111. :  Charles  die<l  inchildlnxxl;  l.illie.  the  wii< 
ot  Dr.  J.  Pea.sley,  resides  at  Marinette,  Wis.,  w-hich 
is  also  the  home  of  the  next  child.  William  J.: 
Frank  M  is  a  salesman  in  a  wh»iles.ile  mercantile 
establishment  in  Chicago:  the  next  son.  John  C 
is  c<J!Uiecte<l  with  his  father  in  business  and  re' 
sides  at  home:  (iu>-  W  is  a  druggist,  and  the 
youngest  child.  Florence  E..  is  at  home  with 
her  parents.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Wagner  also  ha\« 
six    living  grandchildren. 

16 


in     tlic   l.ntliir.iii    l.utli,    Mr 
;i.dl\      attendetl   the    Congrcga 
tional    Church    since    c\>niing    to    this    cuuntv. 
He    was    Treasurer    of    that     soci^  ■ 
yeiirs,  though  never  a  memlier.      H< 
>  ears  a  member  »if  the  Sons  «»f  TetniKfance.  ami 
ha«.   always   taken   an   active  part  in  ter 
Work.      In  fxilitics.  he  has  ever  iK-en  a  1 
I>enioi.-rat       Although  both  towiLship  and  ctninty 
are  stroiij;l\    Ke]iublic;in,    he  servc<l  font 
Sui>er\isiir  <>i  Millim  Township,  anil  «lii: 
year   of  that    time  was  Chairman  of  the  County 
Board.      While  serving  in  I:  \llib- 

ite<l  a  gtxid  knowle<igeof  J. .  -      In 

1.SK6  he  was  ap|>ointe<l  Postmaster  by  President 
Clevelanil.      I'ikiu  the  lalter's  >>  '     '     '     :i    he 

}H»iti\tI\  decline*!  toa^ain  1k.V' ■  .:i-for 

the  i>osition.  though  strongly  urged  to  do  so  by 
the  citizens  of  all  jx>litical  views.  Mr.  Wagner 
justly  arguetl  that  the  emoluments  of  the  office 
sluudd  go  to  some  one  more  in  need  of  the  same. 
When  the  village  of  ProsjK-ct  Park  wasorganizetl. 
he  was  e!ecte<!  one  of  the  first  Trustees,  serving 
four  years. 

Mr.  Wagner  has  alwavs  maniiested  a  -mcerc 
interest  in  the  c^iLse  of  education,  serving  four- 
teen years  as  School  Director,  during  which  lime 
the  school  at  this  place  was  s;iid  to  Ik:  the  l>est  in 
the  c<junty.  He  is  an  intelligent,  courteous  gen- 
tleman, and  enjoys  the  friendship  and  esteem  of 
an  extensive  circle  of  acquaintances 


^-f^e 


-=) 


3<)||N  Rl'MBI.K  was  l>oni  in  Martinsburg. 
I.ewio  County.  N.  Y..  June  29.  iSio.  and 
.led  March  27,  1H61.  in  what  was  then  Bab 
cock's  Grove,  but  is  now  I^imbard.  DuPage 
County.  When  quite  \oung.  the  father  of  our 
subjeii  die<l.  and  he  was  reareil  b>  a  fanner,  who 
lived  in  the  neighb  irh«Mxi  of  his  birthitlacr.  He 
en<!ure«l  main  of  the  hardshii>s  and  trials  which 
fall  to  (he  lot  of  the  friendless  ori>han,  and  was 
not  |iennitte<l  to  attend  ^^houl  until  after  he  had 
"      le*!    his   majority       His   s< - 

in  farm  work,  and  from  u  < 


322 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


was  inured  to  the  arduous  labors  connected  with 

the  life  of  an  agriculturist.  In  1835,  he  deter- 
mined to  seek  a  home  in  the  We.st.  believing  that 
he  would  thereby  better  his  financial  condition 
and  rise  in  the  world  with  greater  rapidity.  A 
few  years  after  locating  in  Illinois,  he  entered  a 
claim  near  Xaper\ille  and  began  farming  for  him- 
self. 

On  the  24th  of  October,  1837,  Mr.  Rumble  was 
luiited  in  marriage  with  Miss  Rebecca  Hardy, 
daughter  of  David  and  Martha  (Taft  j  Hardy,  and 
a  native  of  Strafford,  Yt.  Her  father,  who  was 
also  a  native  of  the  Green  Mountain  State,  was  a 
son  of  Biley  and  Rebecca  (Ta\-lorJ  Hardy,  and 
on  the  paternal  side  was  of  French  descent.  His 
father  was  a  native  of  France  and  ser\-ed  in  the 
armv  of  that  countn.-.  His  mother  was  born  in 
New  Hampshire,  and  was  a  cousin  of  Gen.  Zachary 
Tavlor.  Mrs.  Martha  Hardy,  mother  of  Mrs. 
Rumble,  was  a  daughter  of  Preserved  and  Anna 
Taft.  Her  father  was  a  Quaker  preacher,  and  her 
mother  was  reared  in  the  Quaker  faith.  Both 
were  natives  of  Strafford,  Vt. 

I'nto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Rumble  were  born  four 
children:  Henrietta,  deceased,  wife  of  L.  Seavy; 
Celestia,  deceased,  who  was  a  most  highly  es- 
teemed young  lady,  and  for  several  years  success- 
fully engaged  in  teaching  in  DuPage  County: 
Nora,  widow  of  J.  Z.  Moore,  who  died  December 
15,  1889, at  Menlo,  Iowa:  and  Julia,  widow  of  H.  C. 
Bancroft,  who  died  in  Wheaton,  March  31,  1892, 
at  the  age  of  fifty-seven  years.  He  was  born  in 
Plainfield,  Vt.  Mrs.  Bancroft  now  resides  with 
her  mother.     She  has  one  son,  Edgar  John. 

About  1840.  Mr.  Rumble  sold  his  claim  near 
Xaperville,  and  after  making  a  visit  to  Ohio  en- 
tered a  farm  near  the  present  village  of  Lombard. 
This  land  he  impro\ed  and  cultivated  until  his 
death.  He  was  an  enterprising  agriculturist,  and 
the  success  he  achieved  in  life  was  due  to  his  own 
efforts.  A  part  of  the  village  of  Lombard  now 
stands  on  what  was  originally  his  farm.  He 
passed  away  March  27,  1861.  and  his  death  was 
deeply  mourned,  for  he  was  a  highly  respected 
citizen.  In  September,  1S71,  his  wife  sold  out 
and  removed  to  Wheaton,  where  she  is  yet  living, 
at  the  age  of  sevent>--seven.     Mr.   Rumble  was  a 


stanch  Republican  in  politics,  and  joined  the 
part\-  on  its  organization.  He  lived  a  quiet,  un- 
as.suming  life,  but  won  the  confidence  and  good- 
will of  all. 

Mrs.  Rumble  came  with  her  parents  to  DuPage 
County  in  1837,  making  the  journey  from  Detroit 
by  team.  Her  father  died  at  Brush  Hill  in  1S49, 
at  the  age  of  .sixty-five.  Her  mother  died  in 
Chicago,  August  2.  1854,  akso  .sixty-five  years  of 
age.  They  had  seven  children,  but  onlv  two  are 
now  living.  One  son,  David,  was  li\-ing  in  Colo- 
rado at  the  time  of  the  breaking  out  of  the  late 
war.  He  there  raised  a  company,  entered  the 
service  and  fought  for  the  Union  until  its  preser- 
vation was  an  assured  fact.  Mrs.  Rumble  and 
Mrs.  Bancroft  are  members  of  the  Methodist 
Church.  The  former  is  a  woman  of  rare  judg- 
ment and  executive  ability.  After  the  death  of 
her  husband,  when  most  of  the  able-bodied  men 
of  the  community  had  gone  into  the  army  and  re- 
liable help  was  not  to  be  had,  she  carried  on  the 
farm  alone  succes.sfully  for  several  years,  and  was 
pronounced  by  her  neighbors  a  model  farmer  in 
many  re.spects.  She  possesses  many  excellencies 
of  character,  and  it  is  with  pleasure  that  we  pre- 
sent to  our  readers  this  record  of  her  life. 


[=~ 


""DWARD  HAMMETT,  Cashier  of  the  Lin- 
^  coin  National  Bank,  Chicago,  and  a  resident 
^  of  Wheaton.  is  descended  from  an  old  New 
England  family  of  English  origin.  His  great- 
grandfather, Nathan  Hammett,  spent  his  life  in 
Newport,  R.  I,,  where  he  had  an  e.state  on  the 
harbor  front,  which  he  divided  at  death  between 
his  .surviving  sons,  Edward  and  Nathan  He 
passed  awa>- July  18,  1816,  and  his  wife,  Cathar- 
ine Yates,  of  Providence,  R.  I.,  survived  him 
many  years,  d\ing  Februar\-  17,  1837. 

Edward,  eldest  son  of  Nathan  Hammett,  was  a 
builder  and  vessel-owner,  interested  in  the  whal- 
ing industry,  and  passed  his  life  at  Newport. 
He  died  about  1858,  being  upwards  of  eighty 
years  old.  His  wife,  Amy  Lyon,  was  of  English 
descent,  and  was,  like  himself,  a  native  of  New- 


PORTRAIT  AND  HUK'.RAPHICAL    RECORD. 


3>3 


port.      They    had    luc    mjh>  ami   two   ■' 
AnH.-rt.  the  y»Hiiigt.->t  of  ihc^*.  is  still  a  :> 
Newport,  beitit;   seventy-two   year,   of  ajje.  and   | 
Ixrinn    still,   as    always.   engat;e<l    in    the    lumlx  ■ 
trade,  occupying  the  site  of  his  graiidlather's  i- 
tate  on    the  harhor  fmnt.      For  a   few  years  he 
dwelt  at  New   IW."  '  "     t   retnnietl   to   New{>ort 

in  is.>,;.  Mis  wi:  -  ;  .S\vaM.-\ .  wa>  l>on»  in 
Salem.  .Mas.s..  and  was  a  daughter  of  .Mexamler 
Swas«.->  M  in  the  nien-hant  marine  >er\ice. 

making  ;<<  China     Through  her  mother. 

Mrs.  Hanimett  wa.s  descended  front  Jerathniel 
Bowers,  wlio  t-.inie  from  Kngland  alxtut  the  mid- 
dle of  the  seventeenth  century  .  and  seltletl  <>n  the 
Taunton  River,  near  Somerset.  Mas.s.  He  wa.s 
an  extensive  shipbuilder  and  slave-owner,  and 
built  a  magni(i<.x-iit  mansion  near  his  shi])yards. 
On  account  of  its  commercial  surroundings,  this 
is  now  an  unde>iral>le  re«<idence  property,  and  is 
usetl  a.s  a  tenement  for  laborers. 

Edward  Hanunett  was  boni  at  New  Bedford. 
Mass  .  June  jft.  1S4S.  and  was  reared  at  Newport. 
He  atleniie<l  the  public  school  and  a  private  sc1kk»1 
there,  and  a  business  college  at  Providence,  but 
left  scIkxiI  at  the  age  of  fifteen  years,  and  has 
since  been  actively  engaged  in  business.  He 
was  employed  for  a  time  in  the  Newport  jxistoffice, 
'  ■  •  in  his  father's  lumber  officv.  With  an 
to  lie  iu«ml>ered  among  the  citi/eus  of 
the  growing  West,  he  set  out  for  Chicago  at  the 
age  of  nineteen.  He  secured  employment  as  a 
clerk  with  S.  H.  McCrea  &  Co..  grain  and 
produce  commission  dealers,  and  remained  in 
their  employ  fourteen  years,  which  Ls  a  strong  tes- 
timonial to  his  abilitv  and  faithfulness.  For  sev- 
eral years  subsequently  he  was  a  partner  in  the 
firm  of  W.  F.  Johnson  &  Co.,  in  the  same  line  of 
business.  He  was  (»ne  of  the  original  stock- 
holders and  corporators  of  the  Lincoln  National 
Rank,  and  was  one  of  its  first  officers,  ami  after 
two  years  in  other  business,  resumed  his  omnec- 
tion  with  that  bank,  of  which  he  Ls  now  Cashier. 
In  the  spring  of  i.S.S;  he  fjecame  a  resident  of 
Wheaton.  and  purcluisc<l  sixteen  acres  of  land, 
with  a  hand.somc  mansion  facing  College  A  vetme. 
at  the  amier  of  I*'  '  •  ^-  t  This  house  oc 
cupies  an  elevati-  ing   a   view   of  the 


>  il\  ti(  Whcalon  ami  surrounding  country,  and  i» 
in  itteal  home  in  which  to  rear  a  family 
On  Nox-cmber  j8.  1870.  in  Chicago,  Mr  Hani 
'  marrii-<l  Miss  Mar>  E  Culver,  who  is  u 
\c  of  that  dt\  Her  parents,  John  Breesc 
Culver  and  Margaret  A.  Boyd,  were  bom  in  New 
Jersey,  and  tlie  city  of  I^th.  Sctrtland,  respei 
tively  .  the  latter  l>eiiig  a  daughter  of  John  and 
J  en  n  net  te  Boyd.  Mrs  Hamniett's|>aternal  grand 
father.  Phineas  CiiUer,  was  Ixjni  March  17.  1764 
111  Ik-niard.  Somerset  County.  N.  J.  His  father 
came  fmm  Shrewsbury,  England,  to  Bernard  whetj 
an  oUl  man.  and  Phineas  was  earl\  left  ail  orphan 
With  three  elder  brothers  he  joinetl  the  fortunes 
of  the  Continental  Army,  being  employed  for  se\"- 
eral  years  as  errand  Uty.  and  carr>  ing  a  musket 
at  last.  He  settled  at  Horsehcads,  N.  Y.,  and 
became  wealthy,  owning  five  hundred  acres  of 
land,  but  he  refused  to  emplo>-  slave  lalx>r.  asdid 
many  of  his  neighlxirs.  His  wife.  Phcelie  Brcese. 
was  a  daughter  of  John  and  Hannah  (Gilder- 
sleeve  '  Breese.  the  fonner  one  of  the  first  set- 
tlers at  HorscheacLs.  N.  Y..  and  his  wife  a  scion 
of  an  old  Protestant- Irish  family.  John,  father 
of  John  Breese.  wasNini  in  .Shrewsbury.  Ivigland, 
in  1713,  and  settled  at  Bernard,  Somerset  County. 
N.  J.,  in  17^55.  His  wife,  IXirolhy  Riggs,  was 
als«j  a  native  of  Shrewsbury  John  Breese.  their 
son.  was  l»rn  at  Bernard  in  Noveinl>er,  1738. 
Hannah  Gildersleeve  was  bom  in  June,  1750,  and 
they  were  marrie<l  June  v>-  •7'><^-  '"»  date  which  is 
supjxjsed  to  have  foIlowe<l  his  settlement  at  Horse- 
heads.  Ph<tbe  and  Deborah  Breese.  their  twin 
daughters,  were  Ixirn  in  February.  177;  From 
the  Breese  family  are  desix-ndetl  many  noted 
.\merican  citizens,  among  whom  may  he  nien- 
tioiieti  the  late  Judge -Samu'  '  -  '  Breese.  C  ■ 
Justice  of  the   State  of  IV.  ;',iuel    Fiii 

Breese  .Morse,  inventor  of  the  elei-tric  telegraph. 
aii<l  Siunuel  Sidney  Breese.  Rear-.\dniiral   of  the 
I'nitcd  .States  Na\y  .  who  was  buried  at  NewjNirt 
John   B.  Culver,  tme  of  the  ptximinetit   early 
citizens  of  Chicago,  now  resides    with    li;- 
ter.  .Mrs     Hammctt.  at   Wheaton       Tht 
of  the   latter,    nine  in   number,    are   as  follows 
.\ll>ert.    a   student   in  the   medical   ilej>artment  r.f 
the    Michigan   I'linersity  at  Ann  .Arbor .   l,Itv»t-l 


324 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICaI,  RECORD. 


lyn;  Edith  May:  Edward:  Helen:  Amy:  Law- 
rence; Dorothy  and  Margaret.  The  eldest  mar- 
ried Man.-  lone  Cook,  of  Chicago. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hamniett  are  communicants  of  the 
Methodist  Church,  and  in  many  ways  are  active 
in  furthering  the  best  interests  of  the  community. 
Their  home  bears  many  e\-idences  of  refined  and 
cultivated  taste  and  is  the  domicile  of  a  happy 
and  well-trained  group  of  children,  the  central 
figure  being  the  cheerful  wife  and  mother.  Mr. 
Hammett  has  never  taken  a  prominent  part  in 
political  affairs,  but  has  ahva\-s  adhered  to  the 
Republican  party,  as  the  advocate  and  adminis- 
trator of  sound  principles  of  government.  He 
has  served  as  a  member  of  the  Town  Council  of 
Wheaton,  and  is  now  a  Trustee  of  the  Adams 
Memorial  Library.  Without  any  sound  of  trump- 
ets, he  proceeds  daily  to  perform  to  the  best  of 
his  ability  his  duty  to  himself  his  family  and  his 
fellow-men. 


-=]. 


"SI 


^-K 


EEORGE  WARNE  GUILD,  who  carries  on 
general  farming  on  sections  p^T,  and  34,  Win- 
field  Township,  is  a  highly-respected  citizen 
of  this  community,  and  with  pleasure  we  present 
the  record  of  his  life  to  our  readers.  A  nati\-e  of 
New  Jersey,  he  was  born  in  Hunterdon  County, 
on  the  28th  of  May,  1837,  ^nd  is  a  son  of  Alex 
E.  Guild,  who  was  a  native  of  the  same  State, 
and  was  of  English  descent.  The  latter  followed 
farming,  and  lived  in  New  Jersey  until  1838, 
when  he  came  to  the  West,  and  located  in  Fulton 
County,  111.,  where  he  took  up  Government  land, 
continuing  its  cultivation  until  1842.  He  then 
went  to  Kane  County,  where  he  entered  another 
tract  of  Government  land.  After  a  few  \ears, 
however,  he  sold  out,  and  removed  to  what  is  now 
called  El  bum,  where  he  again  entered  land. 
There  he  kept  hotel  for  about  ten  >ears,  and  lived 
in  Kane  County  until  1852,  when,  selling  out,  he 
removed  to  Chicago,  where  he  engaged  in  dealing 
in  milk.  In  i860  he  went  to  Pike's  Peak,  mak- 
ing an  overland  trip,  and  was  engaged  in  mining 
for  several  years.     At  this  writing  he  is  li%4ng  in 


Portland,  Ore.,  in  the  seventy-eighth  year  of  his 
age.  His  life  has  been  an  active  and  u.seful  one, 
and  has  also  been  succe.s.sful .  He  is  a  public- 
spirited  citizen,  and  himself  and  wife  are  members 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church. 

Mr.  Guild,  Sr.,was  united  in  marriage  with  Miss 
Susanna  Warne,  and  to  them  were  born  five  sons 
and  six  daughters.  Two  are  now  deceased  . 
George  W'.  is  the  eldest;  Lizzie  J.  is  the  next 
in  order  of  birth:  Henry  is  married  and  follows 
farming  at  Ames.  Iowa;  Alexander  E.  is  a  prac- 
ticing attorney  of  Chicago;  Susan  A.,  William, 
Sarah  (deceased),  Reuben,  Ella,  Hettie,  and 
Emma,  who  died  in  1856,  complete  the  family. 

George  W.  Guild  was  born  and  reared  on  a 
farm,  and  was  only  a  year  old  when  his  parents 
came  to  the  West.  He  attended  the  district 
schools  and  completed  his  education  in  Wheaton 
College.  To  his  father  he  gave  the  benefit  of  his 
services  until  he  had  arrived  at  man's  estate, 
after  which  he  spent  one  year  in  working  as  a 
farm  hand  by  the  month.  He  then  engaged  in 
renting  land  until  1862,  and  with  the  capital 
which  he  had  acquired  through  indu.str\-  and  per- 
severance, he  purchased  the  farm  which  he  now 
occupies,  becoming  owner  of  one  hundred  acres. 
To  this  he  has  added  until  the  home  farm  com- 
prises two  hundred  and  forty-five  acres,  and  his 
possessions  altogether  aggregate  three  hundred 
and  fifty-three  acres.  He  now  rents  the  greater 
part  of  his  land,  having  laid  aside  active  business 
cares. 

On  the  5th  of  June,  1859,  Mr.  Guild  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Abbie  Warne. 
They  have  one  child,  John  W.,  who  was  born 
Januarv  5,  1861,  and  died  December  28,  1886, 
his  remains  being  interred  in  Big  Woods  Ceme- 
tery. 

In  politics,  Mr.  Guild  has  always  been  a  .stal- 
wart supporter  of  Republican  principles,  but  has 
never  been  an  aspirant  for  political  offices.  He 
and  his  wife  hold  membership  with  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church.  His  possessions  have  been 
acquired  through  his  own  efforts,  and  his  perse- 
verance, economy  and  good  management  have 
brought  him  a  handsome  competence,  which 
numbers  him    among  the  substantial  citizens  of 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL    RECORD. 


325 


the  coniimuiitx  .  He  is  also  nuinlxre<l  among  the 
pioneer  settlers,  and  has  watched  the  growth  and 
develoj)ment  of  the  otiunty  from  the  ila\  s  of  its 
earlv  infancy. 


=*^-^-?-^&=*= 


EIIAkl.i;S  HHNRV  STII.ICS.  a  jmnnnient 
-tock-breeder  and  businessman  of  Wheaton, 
was  born  at  Cazenovia.  N.  Y.,  on  the  loth 
of  April,  1849,  and  is  a  scion  of  the  oldest  and 
best  New  Kngland  blood.  His  first  ancestor  in 
this  a)nntry  was  Robert  Stiles,  who  came  from 
Yorkshire,  England,  and  settled  at  Rowley, 
Mass.,  in  16,^9.  Joseph  Dalton  Stiles,  grand- 
father of  the  subject  of  this  notice,  was  a  native 
of  New  Hampshire,  born  at  Keene  in  1798. 
He  married  for  his  second  wife  (the  first  having 
died  at  a  very  early  age)  Desdemona  Wadsworth, 
and  lived  at  Cazenovia.  N.  Y.  Here  was  lx)rn 
his  son,  Lyman  Harkness  Stiles,  who  took  for  a 
helpmate  Miss  Martha  Dobbin,  a  native  of  Cats- 
kill,  same  State.  To  them  were  torn  three  chil- 
dren, the  first  of  whom  died  in  infancy,  the  third 
being  he  whose  name  heads  this  article.  When 
the  latter  was  twelve  years  old,  his  parents  died, 
and  he  passed  the  succeeding  eight  years  of  his 
life  as  a  member  of  the  family  of  \'irgil  Maro 
Annour.  a  aiusin  of  Philip  D.  Armour,  the  noted 
Chicagoan. 

C.  H.  Stiles  attended  the  amimon  schools  the 
allotted  time  for  farmer  lads,  and  early  displayed 
an  energy  and  business  capacity  which  gave 
promise  of  a  useful  career.  At  the  age  of  twenty 
years  he  went  to  Cleveland,  Ohio,  where  he  en- 
gaged in  business  with  his  brother-in-law,  Levi 
W.  Hart,  under  the  firm  name  of  Hart  &  Stiles. 
They  manufactured  cigars,  and  kejit  a  drug  store 
and  livery  stable  for  two  years.  The  capital  em- 
ployed in  this  way  by  Mr.  Stiles  was  inherited  from 
his  uncle,  Adoniram  Dobbin,  a  i)rominent  hard- 
ware merchant  of  Geneva,  N.  Y.  Subsequently, 
Mr.  Stiles  .spent  three  years  in  the  I'nitcd  States 
railway  mail  senice,  and  had  charge  of  the  first 
white  mail  car  sent  out  on  the  Lake  Shore  & 
Michigan  Southcni  Railroad.     At  the  expiration 


of  his  term  in  this  .ser\ice,  he  engaged  in  selling 
ptx)ls  and  houkniaking  on  races,  and  has  since 
been  as.sociateii  with  uiost  of  the  great  racing 
events  in  this  country.  It  is  no  uncommon  thing 
for  him  to  handle  Jioo.ooo  in  a  single  day's 
racing.  He  is  now  a  memlnrr  of  the  firm  of  Bride 
&  Stiles,  formerly  Bride.  Ann.strong  &  Stiles, 
which  controls  the  privileges  on  the  principal 
tracks  of  America,  having  just  clo.sed  a  contract 
for  ten  years  on  the  Mexican  circuit. 

Having  resolved  to  engage  in  the  breeding  of 
fine  trotting  animals.  Mr.  Stiles  purchased  in 
1 890  one  hundred  acres,  a  mile  north  of  Wheaton, 
which  he  has  fitted  up  with  all  the  conveTiiences 
and  requisites  for  that  purpose,  and  now  makes 
his  home  there.  He  is  the  owner  of  "Elect- 
wood,"  No.  17,004.  by  "Electioneer."  No.  125; 
dam  "Amrah."  by  "Nutwood."  No.  600.  one  of 
the  fine.st  specimens  of  "Electioneer"  stock,  and 
numerous  other  finely-bred  horses.  He  has  not 
spared  money,  and.  with  his  opportunities  for 
selecting  winning  strains,  he  can  not  fail  to  de- 
velop some  of  the  fastest  stepjx-rs  in  the  country. 
His  fann  and  .stables  compose  the  home  of  one 
hundred  handsome  and  aristocratic  blooded  ani- 
mals. He  is  interested  in  the  new  regulation  mile- 
track  adjoining  his  fann,  a  great  resort  for  Chi- 
cago horsemen,  which  will  hereafter  be  the  scene 
of  interesting  trotting  events.  The  farm  also 
furnishes  a  breeding-ground  for  game  chickens 
and  fine  dogs — Scotch  Collie  and  English  Fox 
Terriers — to  which  Mr.  Stiles  gives  considerable 
attention. 

Socially,  Mr.  Stiles  is  a  most  genial  and  affable 
gentleman,  whom  it  is  a  pleasure  to  meet.  While 
he  is  deeply  interested  in  racing  and  stock-breed- 
ing, he  is  capable  of  conversing  intelligently  on 
other  topics,  being  po.s.sessed  of  an  interest  in 
general  affairs  and  a  progressive  and  enterprising 
.s])iril.  He  is  a  member  and  stockholder  of  the 
Northwestern  Breeders'  A.s.sociation,  and  of  the 
Grand  Army  of  the  Republic. 

Mr.   Stiles  is,   no  doubt,   the  youngest  soldier 
who  saw  two  years'   active  service  in  the  Civil 
War.     He  enlistetl   in  July,    i86_^,   in  Company 
B,  Fifteenth  New  York  Cavalry,   and  served  un 
der  Gens.  Sigel.    Hunter  and  Sheridan,    taking 


326 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


part  in  even-  battle  and  all  the  campaigns  in  the 
Shenandoah  \'alley.  The  horse  he  rode  in  the 
Hunter  campaign  was  one  of  three  that  came  back 
in  our  lines  out  of  thirteen  hundred  starters,  which 
not  only  shows  that  it  was  a  hard  campaign  on  men 
and  horses,  but  also  shows  that  Mr.  Stiles  was  a 
good  forager  and  horseman.  He  was  a  member  of 
Custer's  famous  division,  the  only  cavalry-  division 
that  ever  received  a  distinctive  badge  from  the 
Government,  which  consisted  of  a  red  necktie, 
worn  at  the  Grand  Review  in  Washington,  in 
June,  1865.  Immediately  after  the  la.st-naraed 
event,  Mr.  Stiles  was  discharged  as  a  supernum- 
erars-  non-commi,ssioned  officer,  his  regiment 
having  been  consolidated  with  another. 

In  1889  occurred  an  interesting  and  important 
event  in  the  life  of  Mr.  Stiles,  when  he  took  for 
a  helpmate  Miss  Delia  E.  Burt,  a  native  of  Liv- 
erpool, England,  and  a  daughter  of  an  Episcopal 
clerg\-man.  Rev.  Dr.  Lionel  Jerome  Burt  and  his 
wife  Henrietta  Evangeline,  nee  Westreff.  Mrs. 
Stiles  is  an  amiable  and  accomplished  lady,  who 
takes  an  interest  in  church  and  society  matters, 
and  presides  over  the  hospitable  home  of  her  hus- 
band with  grace  and  ease.  Their  residence  oc- 
cupies a  high  and  healthful  site,  overlooking  the 
little  cit}' of  Wheaton,  and  is  the  abode  of  quiet 
elegance  and  refinement. 


-^^+^1 


r^IERCE  DOWNER  was  numbered  among  the 
yf  pioneer  settlers  of  northern  Illinois,  and  was 
J»)  the  honored  founder  of  Downer's  Grove. 
The  record  of  his  life  is  inseparablj'  connected  with 
the  hi.story  of  this  communit}-.  and  this  work 
would  be  incomplete  without  the  sketch  of  one 
who  bore  such  a  prominent  part  in  public  affairs 
in  earlier  years.  He  was  born  in  Plainfield, 
Windham  County,  Vt..  July  25,  1782,  and  his 
father,  Elisha  Downer,  was  one  of  the  early  set- 
tlers of  the  Green  Mountain  State.  Pierce  was 
there  reared  to  manhood,  and  was  married  in 
1808  to  Mrs.  Lucy  Ann  Ellis,  widow  of  Stephen 
Ellis,  whose  father  was  Judge   Ellis,   a   leading 


citizen  of  EUisburg,  Mass.  Her  father  was  John 
Wilson,  a  veteran  soldier  of  the  Revolutionary 
War. 

A  large  family  was  born  unto  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Downer,  and.  wishing  to  provide  for  them  in.  a 
better  way  than  he  believed  pos.sible  in  the  East, 
the  husband  and  father  resolved  to  seek  a  loca- 
tion in  the  West.  In  1S32  he  left  Rutland,  Vt. , 
and  made  his  way  to  Chicago,  there  joining  his 
son  Stephen,  who  was  at  that  time  engaged  in 
con.structing  the  first  light-house  ever  erected  at 
Chicago.  Mr.  Downer  spent  a  few  days  with  his 
son,  during  which  time  he  made  inquiries  con- 
cerning the  surrounding  country.  At  length  he 
decided  that  DuPage  Count\-  was  the  garden  spot 
of  Illinois,  and  took  up  his  residence  upon  what 
is  now  section  6,  Downer's  Grove  Township. 
He  was  the  first  settler  at  the  Grove,  which  was 
named  in  his  honor,  as  were  also  the  township 
and  village.  In  1833  his  son,  George  Dorance, 
came  to  Downer's  Grove,  but  only  remained  here 
for  two  years,  after  which  he  settled  in  St.  Charles, 
111.  In  October,  1834,  his  daughter  Adeline 
came  West  to  keep  hou.se  for  her  father,  and  was 
the  first  white  woman  to  locate  at  the  Grove.  In 
1836  Mrs.  Downer  and  her  son  Elon  came 
around  the  Lakes,  embarking  atSacket's  Harbor 
on  a  schooner  commanded  by  Capt.  Pheatt,  who 
was  well  known  as  one  of  the  most  popular  and 
able  captains  on  the  Lakes.  Such  a  trip  in  1836 
was  considered  as  great  an  undertaking  as  a  trip 
now  around  Cape  Horn. 

Mr.  Downer  was  a  practical  and  progressive 
farmer,  who  kept  well  posted  on  and  made  use  of 
all  improvements  in  farm  machinery.  It  was  his 
pride  that  his  farm  was  one  of  the  best-tilled  in 
the  State.  His  fences  were  well  kept,  everything 
was  neat  and  orderly,  and  his  stock  was  in  good 
condition.  His  life  was  a  bu.sy  one,  yet  he  found 
time  to  keep  himself  well  informed  on  all  the 
questions  of  the  day.  During  his  entire  life  he 
was  a  reader  of  the  Congressional  Record.  He  had 
one  of  the  best  libraries  in  the  State,  and  many 
hours  were  spent  in  making  the  contents  of  the 
volumes  his  own.  In  all  his  intere.sts  and  work 
he  found  a  faithful  companion  and  helpmate  in 
his  wife,  and  together  they  traveled  life'sjourney 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


for  fifty-five  years.  Mr>  IV>\viict  died  on  ihe 
25th  of  March,  is^^.  aiwl  only  for  a  few  short 
hours  were  they  sejiaratcil  by  de-.ith,  for  the  fol 
lowing  day  Mr.  Downer  pas.sc»l  away.  They 
were  Imrieil  on  the  old  honic>tea«l  on  Friilay.  the 
27th,  and  throu){hout  theconnnunity  iheir  los.i  was 
mourned.  Mr  D*»wner  was  ever  found  in  the 
front  rank  <>f  enlcq>riscs  i-aUndated  t«>  prove  of 
public  benetit.  and  the  ttmntv  ».->  ..vni/.  ■!  in  liim 
a  valued  citizen. 

Stephen  E..  son  «)f  Pierce  iMiwuci.  antl  twin 
btolher  of  George,  was  born  S<.-ptenil»cr  28,  1S09. 
and  in  a  ver>'  eafly  day  emigrated  to  Chicago. 
In  1S37  he  niarrie<l  Aiuaiula  Tasker.  and  unto 
them  were  Ixini  four  children;  Lucy  Ann.  Ellen 
Anianda.  George  E.  and  Jerome.  Luc>-  Ann  be- 
came the  wife  of  Henr>-  I*ierce  Downer,  ami  they 
have  two  children.  Elletta  A.  and  Charles  H. 
The  latter  is  manager  of  the  Union  Publishing 
House,  of  Chicago,  and  resides  in  lK>wncr"s  Grove. 
Ellen  Amanda  is  the  wife  of  Jerome  H.  Hitch- 
cxKk.  and  their  daughter.  Pearl  L.,  is  the  wife  of 
Clay  Bradley,  by  whom  she  has  three  children, 
George  Elsworth.  Nellie  and  L>le.  George  Evans 
married  Delia  Henr>-.  who  died  without  issue  in 
1885,  and  the  next  year  he  weddeil  Catherine  Es- 
ser.  by  whom  he  has  tliree  children:  George  Mel- 
\-iIle.  boni  August  i,  1887:  Pierce  Aubrey,  May 
24.  iSSy;  and  IX-lia  Marie.  July  29.  1S92. 

Adeline  l)owncr,  daughter  of  Pierce  Downer, 
was  l)om  in  Rutland,  N.  Y.,  Septemlier  12.  1812. 
James,  the  ne.xt  chiUl.  was  l)orn  in  Rutland  June 
10,  1818.  and  there  died  in  July.  1819.  Maria 
was  bom  in  Rutland  August  6,  1820,  and  died 
Februar>'  1,  1821.  Elon  E..  l»oni  March  17. 
1M27,  married  Ellen  M.  Knox,  daughter  of  John 
Knox.  Sc\eral  children  were  l><»rn  to  them, 
but  all  die<l  in  y<iutli  save  Addie  M.  an<l  Jame> 
Pierce.  The  former  n»arrie<l  Frank  Lindle>  .  of 
Downer's  Grove.  Superintendent  of  Car  Ser>icr 
on  the  Chicago,  Burlington  &  yuinc>  Railroad 
Shedie<l.  leaving  a  daughter.  Lucy.  Janics  P 
married  Nellie  Archer,  and  has  one  child.  William 

George  iKiraiKe   I'  ■    r   sub 

ject  of  this  sketch,  a;  ~     ,  :ien  E  . 

was  bom  in  Rutland,  N.  Y..  September  38,  1809, 
and  in  I'tica.  N    Y  .  was  married  June  25.  1836. 


to  Miss  Lunna  Gertrude  Bulkeley.  daughter  of 
Hen r>  Stanley  and  Sallie  (  Durrin  >  Bulkele>  of 
Fairfield,  Conn.  Mrs.  Downer  trace«l  her  ance» 
tn'  in  this  oonntr>'  back  to  Rev.  Peter  and  Jane 
Ann  Bulkele> .  who  came  to  America  in  1634 
Henr>'  Stanle>  Bulkele>  .  her  fattier,  the  aon  of 
Jonathan  and  Hannah  1  Ho\t )  Bulkele>',  wasiMmi 
March  18,  1776.     Jonathan.  ;  ■  Peter  and 

Abigail  Bulkeley,  was  Ixim^v,; -^i  21,  1731. 

He  married  Miss  Hannah  Hoyt.  daughter  of 
James  Hoyt,  of  Norwalk.  Conn..  June  21.  1762 
With  this  family  is  associated  an  incident  of  the 
Revolutionan,-  War  well  worthy  of  mention.  On 
the  7th  of  July,  1776,  Gov.  Tr>on  sailed  with  his 
anny  from  New  Haven,  and  the  next  morning 
disembarked  upon  the  beach  at  Fairfield.  The 
Hessians  who  accoiiii>aiiied  him  were  his  incen- 
diaries, and  to  them  he  intrusted  the  wielding  of 
the  torch  which  was  to  bum  the  town.  The  peo- 
ple fled,  and.  not  ex{>ecting  that  their  homes 
would  be  bunic<l.  left  most  of  their  furniture  be- 
hind. The  distress  was  coiise«iuently  ver>'  great. 
Among  the  buildings  s;ivetl  was  that  of  Mr 
Bulkeley.  which  Tr>oii  made  his  headquarters 
The  officer  who  had  command  of  the  British  fleet 
was  Mrs.  Bulkeley 's  brother,  and  he  requested 
that  Trj'on  save  the  house  of  his  sister.  Tryon 
acquiesced,  and  the  house  was  spared,  as  were 
the  two  adjoining  houses,  which  \\<  ■  !o 

render  it  inipt>ssible  to  burn  them  .  .:  _..  .an- 
gering Mrs.  Bulkeley 's  home.  The  three  houses 
arc  ■  to  this  da>'. 

1  .keley.  the  father  of  Jonathan,  was  the 

son  of  Joseph  and  Martha  (  Beers)  Bulkeley.  and 
was  l»oni  in  Fairfield,  Conn  .  May  21,  1684  Jo- 
seph Bulkeley,  son  of  Thomas  and  Sarah  (Jones  1 
Bulkeley.  was  bom  in  1644.  Thomas  Bulkele> 
was  tht 
Peter  - 
161 

Rc\      I'clt!     li;  \.is    ol    ll;i     :.•-! 

generation  of  tli'  .\    in    Aniens. 1. 

and  was  itf  homtmble  and  noble  lincag,e,  being 
dc-  ■     "irt    Bull   ■  ..f 

till  who.  III  -^g 

John,  was  Ivord  of  the  manor  of  Bulkeley  m  the 
Count v    Palatine  of  Chester        He   wa»  bom  at 


328 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


Wood  Hill,  in  Bedfordshire,  January  31,  1583. 
His  father,  the  Rev.  Edward  Bulkeley,  D.  D.,  was 
a  faithful  minister  of  the  Gospel,  under  whose 
direction  his  son  received  an  excellent  education 
suited  to  his  rank.  At  the  age  of  sixteen,  he  was 
admitted  to  St.  John's  College,  of  Cambridge,  of 
which  he  was  afterward  chosen  Fellow,  and  from 
which  he  received  the  degree  of  Bachelor  of  Div- 
inity. He  succeeded  his  father  in  the  ministry 
and  enjoyed  his  rich  benefice  and  estate.  For 
about  twenty  years  he  was  a  zealous  preacher  of 
Evangelical  truth  in  his  native  town,  but  at  length 
he  met  with  such  success,  and  his  church  was  so  in- 
creased, that  complaints  were  entered  against  him 
by  Archbishop  Laud,  and  he  was  silenced  for 
his  non-conformity  to  the  requirements  of  the 
English  Church.  This  circum.stance  induced  him 
to  emigrate  to  New  England,  where  he  might 
enjoy  liberty  of  conscience. 

To  prevent  detention  Rev.  Mr.  Bulkeley  left 
England  in  disguise  on  the  ves.sel,  '  'The  Susan  and 
Ellen,"  and  as  a  matter  of  precaution  his  wife 
Grace  and  son  John  embarked  in  another  ship. 
He  arrived  in  Caiubridge  in  1634,  and  became  a 
leader  of  tho.se  resolute  men  and  self-denying 
Christians  who  founded  Concord.  Here  he  ex- 
pended mo.st  of  his  estate  for  the  benefit  of  his 
people.  He  was  remarkable  for  his  benevolence. 
To  his  servants  who  had  lived  with  him  for  sev- 
eral years,  he  would  give  farms,  and  then  employ 
others  to  be  treated  in  like  manner.  His  merit 
and  affability  drew  around  him  persons  of  all 
ages,  and  his  easy  address,  great  learning  and 
eminent  piety  rendered  his  society-  pleasing  and 
profitable.  He  was  a  thorough  Christian,  and 
his  untiring  labors  and  persuasive  eloquence  made 
him  a  successful  preacher.  He  often  wrote  .series 
of  sermons  on  particular  pa.ssages  of  scripture,  and 
one  of  these  on  Zachariah  ix:  2  was  published  as 
"The  first-born  of  New  England,"  and  passed 
through  several  editions,  the  last  bearing  the 
title  "The  Gospel  Covenant,  or  The  Covenant  of 
Grace  Opened."  In  it  is  explained:  (  i.  )  The 
difference  between  the  covenant  of  grace  and  cov- 
enant of  works.  (2.)  The  different  administra- 
tion of  the  covenant  before  and  since  Christ.  (  3.  J 
The  benefits  and  blessings  of  it.  ( 4. )  The  con- 
ditions.     (5.J     The  properties  of  it. 


Two  of  Mr.  Bulkeley's  manuscripts  are  pre- 
served in  the  librarj-  of  the  American  Antiquarian 
Society,  one  of  which  contains  answers  to  several 
theological  questions,  and  the  other  on  the  char- 
acter and  government  of  the  church.  From  Shat- 
tuck's  Histor>-  we  learn  that  Rev.  Mr.  Bulkeley 
was  one  of  the  organizers  and  the  first  pastor  of 
the  church  in  Concord,  Mass. — the  first  church 
in  America  to  adopt  the  practice  of  catechising 
children.  Cotton  Mather  .says,  "This  was  one  of 
the  constant  exercises  of  the  Sabbath.  All  un- 
married people  were  required  to  answer  questions, 
after  which  expositions  and  applications  were 
made  by  Mr.  Bulkely  to  the  whole  congregation. 

We  now  return  to  the  history  of  Mr.  and  Mrs, 
George  Dorance  Downer,  and  note  their  children 
as  follows: 

Henrj-  Pierce  was  born  May  15,  1837,  and 
married  Lucy  Ann,  daughter  of  Stephen  Ellis. 

George  Orson,  born  May  16,  1840,  married 
Jean  M.,  daughter  of  James  Williamson,  and 
unto  them  were  born  the  following  children: 
George  Bruce,  born  March  24,  1870;  Roy  Ed- 
ward, April  8,  1874;  James  Earl,  April  18,  1876; 
and  Grace  Martha,  September  22,  1878. 

Martha  Lucina,  only  daughter  of  George  D. 
Downer,  born  May  26,  1846,  became  the  wife  of 
Albert  Lee,  of  Vermont,  and  afterward  married 
Clark  R.  Hunt,  of  Aurora,  111. 

John  Demp.ster,  born  May  26,  1848,  resides  at 
Dcnvner's  Grove.  He  was  married  September 
10,  1884,  to  Rose  L.  Deuel,  by  whom  he  has  three 
children:  Martha  Lucina,  born  January  9,  1886; 
Rose  Ellen,  November  5,  1888;  and  Marie  H., 
September  27,  1890. 

Melville  Bulkeley,  born  December  26,  1851, 
was  united  in  marriage  May  24,  1882,  with  Miss 
Adelaide  F.,  daughter  of  Robert  .Summers,  who 
was  born  in  England,  and  is  a  .son  of  Joseph 
'  Summers.  They  have  two  children:  Martha 
Adelaide,  born  July  17,  1883;  and  Helen  Fitzena, 
January  13,  1887. 

Of  Pierce  Downer's  descendants  at  the  Grove, 
George  E.,  the  .son  of  Stephen  E.,  is  engaged  in 
the  house-painting  and  decorating  business. 

Melville  B.,  grandson  of  Pierce  and  son  of 
George,  is  a  member  of  the  firm   of  Downer  & 


Thomas  Betts. 


PORTRAIT  AND  HIOGRAFHICAL    RECORD. 


i3« 


Markham.  proprietors  of  thr  l'nion  I'uhlishiiig 
HoiLsc  of  Chicago. 

John  iKiwticr,  his  brother,  is  as.stx'ialci1  with 
him  in  the  publishing  business. 

Klon.  the  son  of  Pierce,  still  lives  on  the  oKl 
homestead  in  the  enjoynjent  of  a  well-earned 
competencA'.  James  Downer,  his  son,  carries  on 
the  fann.  he  and  his  good  wife  assuming  the 
cares  and  burdens  of  life,  while  the  father  an<l 
mother  arc  peacefully  drifting  along  the  shores  of 
time  to  a  happy  old  age. 


'HOMAS  BKTTS.  a  retired  fanner  residing 
in  Naperville.  was  lx)nion  the  hth  of  Decem- 
l>er.  1832,  in  Rochester,  N.  V.,  and  comes 
of  English  parentage.  His  father,  Tlumias  Belts, 
was  a  native  of  England,  and  there  was.  rcare<l 
and  learneil  the  trade  of  shoemaking.  After  arriv- 
ing at  mature  years,  he  wedded  Mary  Wilson,  who 
was  also  lK)n»  in  Yorkshire,  luigland.  The  \ear 
1829  witnes-strd  their  emigration  to  America. 
They  located  on  Long  Island,  thence  renioveil  to 
western  New  York,  and  in  1S40  came  to  DuPage 
County.  hK^ting  three  miles  west  of  Naperville. 
The  father  entered  land  from  the  G<i\ennnent. 
built  a  small  log  hou.se,  and  began  the  improve 
ment  of  the  fann.  To  agricultural  pursuits  he 
devoted  his  energies  until  1884.  when  he  reniovetl 
to  Naperville.  where  he  lived  retire<l  until  his 
death,  in  1S87.  in  the  eighty-eighth  year  of  his 
age.  His  wife  dietl  upon  the  home  farm,  at  the 
age  of  eighty-three  This  worthv  oiuple  were  the 
parentsof  three  children,  but  our  xtibji-*  t  the  only 
son.  is  the  only  one  now  living. 

Thomas  lietts  was  a  lad  of  but  li^'m  siitnniers 
when  he  c-ame  with  his  parents  to  Illinois  The 
only  educational  privileges  affordetl  him  were 
those  of  the  district  schools  At  the  age  <if  fifteen, 
he  left  home  and  Ix-gan  working  on  the  railroad 
by  the  month.  He  afterward  leanied  the  caq>en- 
ter's  trade,  which  he  followe<l  until  the  breaking 
out  of  the  late  war,  when,  prompted  b\  patriotic 
impulses,  he  enlisted  in  Company  I,  Fifty -eighth 
Illinois  Infantry,  as  a  private.     The  first  engage 


ment  in  which  he  {Mirticipatcd  was  the  battle  of 
Ft.  Ikmelsfin.  At  the  Uittle  of  ShiKtli.  a  minie- 
ball  struck  him  in  the  left  hip  and  <.-aine  out  of 
the  right  thigh,  .\ftcr  one  year  he  wns  dl* 
charged,  and  the  brave  l»oy  in  blue  who  proudly 
inarcheil  forth  to  the  defense  of  his  oiuntr\'  re- 
turned home  on  cnitches.  As  noon  as  possible, 
however,  lie  re  enliste<l.  jt»ining  Battery  I.  Sei-ond 
Illinois  Artillery,  and  scrvetl  as  Quartermaster 
Sergeant  until  the  close  of  the  war,  when  he  was 
mustere<l  out,  in  June.  1S65. 

When  his  countr\  no  longer  needed  his  scr\"- 
ices,  Mr.  Betts  at  once  returned  to  his  home  and 
family,  and  in  the  spring  of  iK6^>  was  elected 
Town  Clerk  of  Aurora.  In  Octolnrr.  1867.  he 
sold  his  property  there  and  bought  a  farm  in  Du- 
Page County,  near  the  old  Belts  homestead,  up<jn 
which  his  father  first  lociite<i.  There  he  remained 
eighteen  years,  carrying  on  agricultural  pursuits, 
after  which  he  came  to  Na]>erville. 

In  1S57.  Mr.  Betts  was  united  in  marriage 
with  Hannah  Wilson,  who  was  lx)rn  in  York.shire, 
England,  and  came  t«)  America  when  sixteen 
years  of  age.  They  have  four  children,  two  soil> 
and  two  daughters;  Mar>  ,  wife  of  George  Frost. 
of  Aurora:  Charles  R..  of  Nai>er\'ille,  who  is  en- 
gaged ill  the  fecil,  mill  and  coal  business.  Thonia.'< 
H.,  an  engineer;  and  Olive,  wife  of  M  1.  Willard. 
of  Naperville. 

In  his  political  affiliations.  Mr.  BetU  has  l>eeii 
a  stalwart  Republican  since  ca.stiiig  his  first  Pres- 
idential vote  for  John  C.  Fremont.  For  eight 
years  he  has  filled  the  offiix-of  Av«rs.sor.  hLs  faith 
ful  (lerforinance  of  duty  winning  him  frequent  re- 
election. For  three  years  he  scrve<l  as  Suj>er\isor 
of  his  township,  and  for  two  years  was  Alderman 
of  this  place.  He  has  also  iK-eii  S^'IkxjI  Director 
for  twenty  years,  during  which  time  he  has  tloiie 
effective  service  for  the  c-au.se  ol  education,  which 
finds  in  him  a  faithful  friend.  Socially,  he  i» 
connccte<l  with  the  Ma.sonic  fraternity :  the  Odd 
Fellows'  society ;  and  Walter  Blaiichard  Post  No. 
.^86.  G.  A    R 

Mr.   Betts   has  live<l  a  <|uiet.   una.vsuming  life, 
largely  tle\ote<l  to  fanning  interests,  ami  through 
his  well-directed  efforts  he    has  ai^juiretl  a  hand 
some  com|>etence,  that  now    eiiabU--.  him   to  li\«c 


332 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


retired,  enjoying  the  rest  that  he  has  so  truly 
earned  and  richh'  desen-es.  His  upright,  hon- 
orable career  has  won  him  high  regard,  and  made 
him  a  valued  citizen  of  the  community  where  he 
has  so  long;  made  his  home. 


_=] 


^>^[ 


EARLETON  XOAH  GARY,  eldest  son  of  N. 
E.  Gar\-  ( see  genealogy  elsewhere),  is  a  na- 
tive son  of  Wheaton,  of  whom  her  citizens 
mayjustlvbe  proud.  His  birth  occurred  April 
23, 1868.  He  early  manifested  a  taste  for  study, and 
graduated  at  the  Wheaton  High  School  at  the  age 
of  fourteen  years,  being  a  member  of  the  class  of 
two  first  graduated  from  that  institution,  and  the 
youngest  to  graduate  there,  as  well  as  from 
Wheaton  College,  where  he  took  his  degree  of  A, 
B.  when  onl)-  eighteen  years  old.  Entering  the 
Union  College  of  Law  at  Chicago,  he  was  gradu- 
ated in  1888,  and  at  once  entered  on  the  practice 
of  his  profession  in  that  city.  Without  the  aid  of 
preceptors  in  the  form  of  senior  partners,  or  other 
aid  save  such  as  his  precocious  intellect  afforded, 
he  at  once  .secured  a  remunerative  practice,  and  in 
five  years  has  accumulated  a  handsome  property. 
His  practice  is  general,  and  keeps  him  closely  oc- 
cupied. 

With  his  nervous  activity,  Mr.  Gary  has  as- 
sumed many  duties  outside  of  those  imposed  by 
an  onerous  profession  in  the  keen  atmosphere  of  a 
large  city's  competition,  and  has  been  for  three 
vears  a  local  preacher  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church,  making  numerous  addresses  in  that  ca- 
pacity. He  has  b^en  active  in  the  promotion  and 
management  of  the  Epworth  League,  the  young 
people's  society-  of  the  Methodist  Church,  in 
which  he  holds  numerous  oflScial  positions,  being 
Secretary  of  the  Rock  River  Conference  League 
and  President  of  the  North  Chicago  District 
League. 

In  the  management  of  large  enterprises,  Mr. 
Gary  has  also  shown  marked  capability.  The 
whole  charge  of  the  construction  and  manage- 
ment of  the  Epworth  Hotel,  the  headquarters  of 
Methodist  people  at  the    Columbian    Expo.sition, 


was  placed  in  his  hands,  and  vers-  successfully 
executed.  This  was  about  the  only  temporan,- 
hotel  for  World's  Fair  purpo.ses  that  met  with 
success.  Its  construction  involved  the  expendi- 
ture of  $150,000,  as  well  as  the  raising  of  that 
amount,  and  employed  three  hundred  people,  and 
the  .success  of  the  venture  affords  ample  proof  of 
the  manager's  executive  ability. 

In  1890,  Mr.  Gar>-  built  his  handsome  home  on 
Gary  Avenue,  corner  of  Franklin  Street,  in 
Wheaton,  and  at  once  brought  his  bride  there  to 
reside.  Their  wedding  took  place  on  the  25th  of 
June,  in  that  year.  Mrs.  Gary,  whose  maiden 
name  was  Louise  Stover,  is  the  youngest  daugh- 
ter of  Rev.  Seymour  Stover,  a  pioneer  Methodist 
preacher  of  northern  Illinois,  who.se  biograph\- 
will  be  found  elsewhere  in  this  work.  She  is  the 
faithful  coadjutor  of  her  husband  in  his  worthy 
work,  and  their  home  is  the  seat  of  refinement 
and  quiet,  graceful  hospitality.  Two  children 
have  come  to  bless  this  home,  viz.:  a  son,  born  on 
his  father's  birthday  in  1892,  named  Arthur  Carle- 
ton,  and  a  daughter,  born  December  8,  1893, 
named  Dorothy  Louise. 


i^^^^-= 


r\HILO  WARREN  STACY,  a  prominent  resi- 
U'  dent  of  Glen  EUyii.  is  the  youngest  and  only 
yS  survi\ing  child  of  Moses  and  Joan  Stacy 
( see  biography  of  Moses  Stacy ) .  He  was  boni 
at  Ashford,  Cattaraugus  County,  N.  Y.,  on  the 
13th  of  January-,  1S33.  On  account  of  his  frail 
health  in  jouth,  he  did  not  attend  school  very 
regularlJ^  but  being  mentally  well  endowed,  he 
has  managed  to  become  a  well-informed  and  use- 
ful citizen.  He  attended  Troj-  Conference  Acad- 
emy, at  Poultney,  Vt.,  and  after^vard  Black  River 
Academy,  at  Ludlow,  the  same  State,  for  short 
periods  each,  and  this  was  supplemented  by  the 
advantages  offered  in  the  primiti\e  schools  of 
DuPage  Countv.  He  remained  on  the  home 
'  farm  until  he  was  twenty-three  years  old,  and 
then  began  renting  land,  which  he  subsequently 
purchased  and  now  owns.  His  father's  and  his 
own  estate  at  one  time  included  six  hundred  acres 


PORTRAIT  AND  BUXIRAPHICAL    RECORD. 


of    valuable  laud,  and  his  uiaiu  uccu|>ati<)u  has 
always   iKfii    farmint;   until   within   the  la>l   ten 
years.      His  holdings  now  inchulc  valuable  lots  in 
the  coqx>rale  village  of  (Uen  Hllyn       For  tweul> 
years  he  has  Ik-cu  ».n>j>  reix>rter   for   the   National 
(lovcmnient  ami  tl>e  Stale,  as  well  as  for  C.   K 
W.  Prime,  of  Dwighl.    111.,   a  widely-known  au 
lliority.      Fn>«u  iSSS  to  |S«>2  he  serve<I  a«.  Justiix- 
of  the  Peai-e.  and  from  iS8i    to    i8>/i  had   ehar>{e 
of  the  n^ads   and    streets   of   Milton   Township. 
For  thirty  seven    years   he   has  ojieratetl   a   roiul 
p-ader  in  the  tt>wnshiiJ,  as  a  conlrailor.      In  i.Hs7 
he  was  electe<l  Constable,  and  .scr\'e<l  for  five  years, 
and  has  been  for  many  years  a  School    Director. 
He  has  always  lieen  active  in   furthering   the   in 
terests  of  the  comnuinity,  and  Is  recognize*!  as  a 
man  of  affairs,  enjoying  the  respect  and  good  will 
of  his  fellows. 

Mr.  Stacy  may  be  regardetl  as  a  charter  niem- 
l>er  of  the  Reiniblican  party,  his  first  vote  Ixing 
cast  in  the  year  of  its  organization.  an<l  it  has  al- 
ways been  the  exponent  of  his  views  on  public 
jjolicy.  He  was  for  many  years  a  meml>er  of  the 
Baptist  Church  of  Wheaton.  an<l  now  affiliates 
with  that  denomination  at  Glen  Kllyn.  He  is  a 
meniber  of  the  (irand  Arnn  of  the  Keiniblic.  and 
was  for  five  years  yuartennaster  of  Wheaton 
Post.  He  enli.sted  in  1864  in  Company  H,  One 
Hundre<l  and  Forty-first  lUiiKtis  Infantry,  and 
ai-le<l  as  yuartcnuaster  of  the  niiii)>an\  in  yarri 
son  at  Columbus,  Ky. 

February  22.  1853,  Mr.  Stac>  was  uiarried  to 
.Miss  Betsey  D.  Taylor,  a  native  of  Sj>encer.  X.  Y. 
Mrs.  Stacy's  father.  Rev.  Philander  Taylor,  was 
a  Baptist  clergyman,  a  native  of  W-rniont,  who 
t-ame  early  to  lUintiis,  l<K~ating  at  Newark  in  1844. 
remo\-ing  thence  to  Warrenville.  DuPage  County, 
and  in  i846to01en  Kllyn.  For  man\  \ears  he 
preached  at  (ilen  Kllyn.  Bhiomingdale  and  Hanl- 
ing.  and  died  in  1881  at  the  residence  of  a  !<on 
near  Ottawa,  his  remains  l>eing  interred  in  Forest 
Hill  Cemeten,  at  (ilen  Kllyn  His  wile,  Thank 
ful  W,  Manning,  also  a  native  of  Wrmont,  dietl 
at  filen  Kllyn  in  March,  1870. 

Three  children  have  l>cen  given  to  Mr  and 
Mrs.  Stacy,  only  one  of  whom  survive*,  namely: 
Carrie   A  .    bom   in   1S56    Warren    A  .   Umi  in 


1857.  died  in  1872;  and  l-'annie  .M.,  bom  in  July. 
1864,    die<l    I>ixx-ml<er    ;i,    iNi><<      In    isy^    Mr 
Stac)  ercctetl  his  liandMime  rcsuleiicc  on   the   site 
of  his  father's  first  log  huMsc.  one  of  the  nuMt  de 
sirablr  locations   fur  a   home  in   the  countx        It 
is  an  elevateil  s|M>t  on  Main  Street,  Glen   Kllyn. 
a  half-mile  north  of  the  railroad  station,  and  wa» 
evidentl>    intelideil   by    nature    as    the    scat    i>f   a 
pleasiuit  and  hospitable  home,  siuh  as  now  occu 
pies  and  ad<ims  it 


=*-^iri-^ 


«ySAAC  BRADFORD  CHl'RCHILI..  one  of 
I  the  oldest  and  most  estct:nie<l  citizens  of  I)u- 
X,  Page  County,  is  ilesix-mleil  from  one  of  the 
earliest  New  l-jiglan<l  families  His  an«.x>ton» 
are  supjMisetl  to  have  come  to  America  in  the 
Mayflower  Is:iac  Churchill,  the  gramlfather 
of  our  subjet.'l,  was  lx»rn  Februar>  22.  17.^6. 
prolwbly  in  MassachusetUs.  His  wife.  Mat- 
tiah,  lM>re  liini  nine  children,  the  fourth  being 
name<l  Wiiislow.  The  latter,  who  wrote  his 
name  Churchell,  was  lx>m  at  Brandon.  Vt.,  De 
ceml»er  .V",   i77<>.      He  l>ei-ame  a   farn  '   ^as 

also  a  mason  by  trade.      In  1804  he  n  -  ■•<m 

Brandon  to  Camillus,  Onondaga  County.  N.  V  . 
purchasing  a  farm,  through  which  the  ICrie  Canal 
was  afterward  built,  and  which  he  i-arrietl  on  for 
thirty  years.  He  also  built  and  ran  a  boat.  "The 
Growler,  "  on  the  canal       While  '  .  r  of  the 

New  York  mditia.  he  was  tem|x':  ietl  into 

ser\'ice  in  the  War  of  181 2.  but  did  not  take  part 
in  any  battle.  In  18^4  he  came  to  the  West, 
bringing  his  famil\  and  giMxIs  by  water  as  far  as 
Chicago.  On  their  arrival  he  pun'ha.snl  a  team 
of  oxen,    and   ]■■  '1    to  look    up  a   bx-ation 

Coming  into  D  '>unt>'  by  a  somewhat  cir- 

cuitous route,  he  selctted  a  claim,  which  after 
ward  prove<l  to  Ik-  in  the  n<>rtheast  corner  of  the 
prest-iit   t«iwnship    of   Mill«in.      The   first    house 
which  he  built  of  Iokh  iii  ittill  standing,  and  wa» 
t>.  '  '      "        iintil  ftmr  \ears  ago       He 

(>.  and    improve   this    fann 

until  failing  health  omi|ielle«i  him  to  ainndon  ail 
active  pursuits       Hik  death  occurred  Sej>tenibeT 


334 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


t8.  1847.  Fcr  a  year  or  two  previous  he  had 
been  almost  helpless,  but  bore  his  afflictions  with 
Christian  fortitude.  In  early  life  he  united  with 
the  Presbyterian  Church,  in  which  he  was  for 
many  years  a  Deacon  atid  Chorister.  After  com- 
ing here  lie  and  his  e.stimable  wife  joined  the 
Congregational  Church.  A  year  or  two  after  the 
famih-  came  here,  a  schoolhouse  was  built  at 
Babcock's  Grove,  in  which  religious  ser\-ices 
were  held  regularly  b\-  the  Methodists.  The 
Churchill  family  attended  these  meetings,  and 
when  no  clergyman  was  pre.sent,  which  frequent- 
ly occurred.  Winslow  Churchill  took  charge  of 
the  services,  and  sermons  were  read  by  Isaac  B. 
Churchill,  who  was  quite  an  elocutionist. 

In  politics,  he  was  an  ardent  Whig,  though 
never  a.spiring  to  public  office.  Patriotic,  dili- 
gent and  earnest  in  all  his  undertakings,  he  com- 
manded the  respect  and  confidence  of  all.  and  the 
name  of  Winslow  Churchill  deserves  a  high  rank 
among  the  honored  pioneers  of  DuPage  Couutv*. 
He  was  married  about  1796  to  Miss  Mercy 
Dodge.  Her  death  occurred  February  21.  1863. 
at  the  age  of  eighty-nine  years,  eight  months  and 
eight  davs.  She  bore  her  husband  eleven  chil- 
dren :  William,  deceased:  Melinda.  Mrs.  Ket- 
chum.  also  deceased;  Lurania.  Mrs.  J.  D.  Acker- 
man,  deceased;  Christiana.  Mrs.  D.  Christian: 
Seth.  deceased:  Major,  deceased;  Betsy,  Mrs.  S. 
Mahaffv,-.  of  Palos,  Cook  County.  111.:  Winslow. 
now  residing  at  Downer's  Grove:  Amanda,  de- 
ceased; Isaac  B.,  the  subject  proper  of  this  sketch; 
and  Hiram,  also  deceased.  The  first  four  or  five 
of  these  were  bom  in  ^'ermont,  the  others  m 
Xew  York.  Lurania  and  Christiana  were  twins. 
Up  to  the  death  of  the  former,  which  occurred 
March  31.  1893,  at  the  age  of  ninet>-one  years, 
one  month  and  sixteen  days,  they  were  said  to 
be  the  oldest  living  twins  in  the  world.  Mrs. 
Christian  still  survives  at  her  home  near  Glen 
Ellyn. 

Isaac  B.  Churchill  was  born  at  Camillas,  X. 
Y..  April  22,  18 1 8.  He  was  .sixteen  years  old 
when  the  family  came  to  this  county.  As  soon 
as  their  house  was  built,  he  and  his  brother 
Seth  started  with  an  ox-team  to  break  a  new  road 
to  Chicago,  and  bring  out  a  load  of  goods  which 


had  been  left  there.  In  crossing  Salt  Creek, 
which  was  unusually  high,  the  wagon  was  over- 
turned, but  after  receiving  a  thorough  soaking, 
they  succeeded  in  reaching  the  bank,  and  con- 
tinued the  journey  in  safety. 

On  one  occasion,  Mrt  Churchill  was  going  to 
the  Illinois  &  Michigan  Canal  with  a  load  of 
pork  for  sale.  In  crossing  the  sag  below  Athens, 
on  the  ice.  the  wagon  broke  through,  and  he 
was  obliged  to  unload  it  and  take  it  apart  to 
get  it  out.  Continuing  the  journey  in  his  wet 
clothing,  he  reached  the  boarding-house,  where 
his  load  was  disposed  of.  and  he  slept  that  night  in 
a  barn,  without  change  of  apparel.  Such  incidents 
as  these  serve  to  illustrate  some  of  the  phases  of 
pioneer  life. 

On  coming  of  age  he  entered  a  farm  adjoining 
his  father's,  where  he  now  owns  a  well-improved 
place  of  two  hundred  and  thirty  acres.  When  the 
famih"  first  came  here,  there  was  no  permanent 
habitation  within  five  miles,  but  six  log  houses 
were  built  in  their  immediate  neighborhood  the 
same  sea.son.  About  1857  Mr.  Churchill  planted 
an  artificial  grove  on  his  farm,  the  first  in  this 
part  of  the  countn.-.  This  grove  has  already 
yielded  several  harvests  of  timber,  and  his  ex- 
ample has  been  followed  by  manj-  farmers  on  this 
and  other  prairies.  Mr.  Churchill  retired  fi-om 
active  labor  several  years  since,  renting  the  farm, 
which  is  chiefly  devoted  to  dairying.  He  was 
united  in  marriage  September  15,  1841,  to  Miss 
Angelina  Barker.  Seven  children  blessed  their 
union:  Amos,  now  a  prominent  citizen  of  Glen 
Ellyn:  Wealthy.  Mrs.  S.  Standish.  deceased: 
Andrew,  a  citizen  of  Oak  Park.  111.;  Isaac,  who 
died  in  infancy :  George  Perry,  accidentally  killed 
on  the  railroad,  at  the  age  of  sixteen  years:  Net- 
tie, Mrs.  Clark,  of  Glen  Ellyn;  and  Hattie,  who 
is  now  Mrs.  Wimpress,  and  resides  on  the  home- 
stead farm.  Amos  and  Andrew  both  did  valiant 
service  for  their  country  during  the  late  Rebel- 
lion. Mr.  and  Mrs.  Churchill  also  have  sixteen 
living  grandchildren  and  five  living  great-grand- 
children. Mrs.  Churchill  is  a  daughter  of  Zelotus 
and  Margaret  (Mason)  Barker.  She  was  born 
at  Hampden,  Delaware  County,  N.  Y..  and  came 
with  her  parents  to  this  countj-  in  1839.  From  youth 


PORTRAIT  AND  UIOGRAI'HICAl.    Rl-.C(iRn 


335 


Mr.  Clnir<.'liill  has  tK.t-ii  an  adlu-rtiit  <il  llu-  McIIiikI 
isi  Church  Hi-  casi  his  f(p.i  Presidential  KiUoi  l',»r 
William  H(Mir>'  Harrisuii.  Sinec  thr  orKunixa- 
lion  of  the  Rcpnhlican  jwrty  hi-  has  Ihxmi  a  sti-ad- 
fast  adhi-reiit  thcri-of,  as  arr  all  his  sons  and 
(grandsons.  Ntr.  Churchill  is  an  intelligent,  inili- 
lic-spirite*!  citi/en.  DuHuk  his  resitience  of 
nenrh  sixty  years  in  titi*  county  he  has  fornie«l 
nian>  wanu  friends,  and  all  unite  in  wishing 
him  liin^ -continued  health  and  i>ros|>erit>  .  None 
of  the  family  are  addicte<l  tn  the  use  ul  liquor  or 
tobacco  in  any  fonn.  Mr.  Churchill  was  Class- 
leader  and  Superintendent  of  the  Sal>bath-scho(.il 
for  nianx-  vears. 


=1 


"SI 


^-f^ 


N:  NkV  ToWNSKNI)  W  Il„S(tN  This  ageii 
I'loiu-er.  whose  funeral  was  solemnized  in  the 
Methodist  Church.  Novemhier  3,  i.h«2,  at 
Wheaton.  died  at  4  o'clock,  A.  M..  on  the  31st  of 
t  >ctt>l»er.  at  his  residence  in  that  place. 

Our  subject  was  b«jn>  in  Putney,  Windham 
County.  \'t..  Aj>ril  10.  17S9.  This  was  twenty 
days  iK-fore  (len.  Wa-shington  was  inati^urateil  as 
first  President  of  the  l'nite<l  Slates,  which  event 
was  suljslantialU  the  birth  of  our  nation  in  a  jxi- 
litical  sense,  and  links  the  late  .Mr.  Wilscjn  with 
an  historic  era  of  world-wide  importance.  He 
was  ten  years  old  when  Washington  died,  and 
had  he  seen  him  might  have  retained  his  form 
and  features  in  his  memory  till  the  weight  of 
years  had  efTaixil  it. 

Our  subject  was  a  short  time  in  the  servii-e  as 
teamster  in  the  War  of  1812,  and  during  his  term 
Ix-held  the  decisive  battle  of  Plattsburg,  b\  which 
the  Hritisli  were  driven  from  Lake  Champlain. 

July  16,  1817.  Mr.  Wilson  was  married  to  Miss 
Drra  Wilson,  of  Fairfax,  Franklin  County.  \"t  . 
by  whom  he  hatl  five  children,  onlv  two  of  whom 
lived  lo  maturity.  George  L.  and  Aurelia.  With 
his  famil\ .  consisting  of  these  and  his  wife,  he 
emigrateil  to  Ashtabula  County,  Ohio,  previimo 
to  1850.  at  which  place  he  made  the  acquaintance 
of  the  Naj>er  brothers,  who  were  alxuit  to  estab 
lish  a  colony     at    the    present    site  of    Na|>er\-illc 


He  enlistevl  in  then  •■!■ 

ily  einlMrkeil  in  the  .        .p 

«on"'  in  June.  iS.^i.  together  with  J<t»iq>h  Nii|«ef 
John  NajK-r  John  Mnrnix ,  fatlier  of  the  late 
Judge  .Murray  (see  bio^raphx  elsewhere '.  and 
their  rvs|icctive  families  and  a  few  others,  amv 
ing  at  Chicag<i  aUxit  the  1st  of  July  and  ni  the 
DuPage  iMuntry  aUuU  the  loth  .-Ml  these  men 
were  thoroughbred  pioneers  by  education.  The 
day  anil  age  in  which  the>  lived  n  1  such. 

With  no  impropriety    it  ma>    lie   -  •    theirs 

was  the  heroic  age  of  the  Northwest  They 
ma<le  the  first  scars  on  the  viil,  aTid  planted 
therein  the  see«l  that  has  multiplie<l  a  thou>^nd 
fold,  and  repn»duce<l  the  luxuries  and  grandeur 
of  old  States  on  the  fallow  plains  of  a  wildenieiw 
of  waving  gra.s.ses. 

These  early  fathers  laid  the  foundation  stones 
of  our  ]>re>ent  institutions.  It  was  no  light  lalior 
to  do  this.  Roads  were  to  J>e  made,  streams 
bridged,  i-ottages  and  mills  to  l>e  built,  and 
sch(M>lhonses  and  churches,  and  while  all  this 
was  in  jtrogress  fo<xl  on  which  to  sul>sist  had  to 
lie  raised  from  the  wild  soil. 

The  ai"comi>lisliinent  of  these  tlesign>.  rc-quireil 
a  OMicert  of  action  ami  the  most  stretiuoiLs  indi- 
vidual effort,  stimulated  by  disinterested!  pur- 
j)ose  to  a«lvance  the  ]>nblic  interest.  Here  is  the 
tnie  seiTet  <if  that  aliiding  res]>«t  and  affei-tion 
which  these  early  fathers  now  and  ever  must, 
while  they  live,  retain  for  each  other,  as  was 
abundantly  verifie«l  at  the  funeral  of  N!r  Wilson 
Thither  came  from  all  around  men  venerable 
with  \ears  to  witness  the  last  honors  due  tfi  their 
decea.se<l  ci>mpaiiio;i,  who  seemetl  to  them  like  an 
elder  brother  gathere<l  into  the  last  great  har- 
vest, like  a  rii>e  ear  from  the  frost  bitten  stalk  of  a 
late  autumn. 

The  flight  of  these  early  settlers  Ix-fore  the  hos- 
tile S;tuks  on  the  war']iath  is  an  e\enl  that  will 
desceiKl  into  hi-<tor\  and  |>er|ii-luate  the  meinor> 
of  .Mr  Wilson  and  others  wh»  shuretl  the  dan 
gers  with  him  It  tiMik  plaivon  the  i8tli  of  May. 
iH.^j.  Kver\  thing  was  left  tieliind  except  the 
wives  and  Iwbies  These  were  tnins|H<rted  to  Ft 
I)e:irbofii  as  fast    as   ox  teuin-  ''    can\  them 

across   the   sloughs   that    o\.  the    plains 


336 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


around  Chicago.  This  done,  the  men  returned 
and  formed  themselves  into  scouting  parties  to 
look  out  for  the  enemy,  and  built  a  fort  for  shel- 
ter in  case  of  necessity.  When  'die  danger  was 
past,  all  were  brought  back  and  the  work  of 
building  up  the  country  resumed,  which  has 
gone  on  ever  since. 

After  the  .Sauk  War,  settlements  rapidly  in- 
crea.sed  and  Mr.  Wilson  soon  found  himself  in 
the  center  of  a  farming  community.  The  claim 
on  which  he  had  .settled  was  north  of  the  present 
site  of  Naperville,  just  over  the  line  of  what  is 
now  Milton  Township.  Here  he  resided  till  he 
removed  to  Wheaton,  about  1855.  His  first  wife 
died  at  this  place  a  year  or  two  afterward.  On 
the  iSth  of  February,  1857,  he  married  the  lady 
who  was  formerly  Clara  A.  Brown. 

Our  subject's  daughter,  Aurelia  L.,  married 
Mark  Beaubien.  Jr.,  and  died  in  i860,  leaving 
two  children,  Joel  T.  and  Fann\  O.,  both  of 
whom  are  now  living.  His  son,  George  L..  was 
married  May  7,  1856,  and  died  October  3,  1^58, 
leaving  one  son. 

Mr.  Wilson  was  buried  with  Masonic  honors, 
having  been  a  member  of  that  order  for  over  six- 
ty-six years.  He  was  the  oldest  Mason  in  the 
Northwest  except  Edward  Brewster.  Mr.  Wilson 
having  joined  the  order  in  1816,  at  Fairfax, 
Frankhn  County,  \'t.;  while  Mr.  Brewster  had 
joined  it  two  years  previou.sly  in  Orange  Count>-, 
Yt. 

Mr.  Wilson's  second  wife,  who  survives  him, 
is  a  daughter  of  another  pioneer  .settler  of  DuPage 
Count)-,  namely,  John  M.  Brown.  The  latter 
was  born  in  Cheshire,  Berk.shire  County,  Mass., 
and  his  wife,  Xancy  Westcott,  in  Windsor,  .same 
county.  After  living  a  few  years  at  Aurora,  Erie 
Countv,  N.  Y.,  they  migrated  West,  arriving  in 
June,  1S34,  in  Naperville  Township,  DuPage 
County,  111.  The  journey  was  made  by  team, 
taking  o\-er  three  weeks.  They  .settled  on  a  claim 
adjoining  that  of  Harr>-  T.  Wilson,  where  Mr. 
Brown  died  in  1844,  aged  forty -three  years.  In 
1855,  ^^^  Brown  married  Byram  L.  Harlow,  for 
many  vears  Justice  of  the  Peace  and  Notary  Pub- 
lic at  W'arrenville,  whom  she  sur\-ived  about 
eight  years,  dying  in  1881.    Her  age  was  seventy- 


eight  years.  Mrs.  'Wilson  is  one  of  a  family  of 
seven  children,  three  sons  and  four  daughters. 
One  brother,  Daniel,  now  residing  near  Le  Mars, 
Iowa,  is  the  only  .sur\dvor  beside  Mrs.  WiLson. 
Three  were  born  in  this  county.  John  L.  was 
killed  while  serving  as  a  member  of  the  Eighth 
Illinois  Cavalry,  during  the  Civil  W'ar.  Mrs. 
Wilson's  daughter  by  a  former  marriage,  Genevra 
Phillips,  is  the  wife  of  B.  F.  Stewart,  residing  at 
Dixon,  ni. 


-=]. 


!^H^ 


CS_ 


M 


1^ 


OSES  STACY,  a  worthy  pioneer  of  Du- 
Page County,  was  born  at  Belchertown. 
Hampshire  County,  Mass.,  in  1796.  His 
father  was  a  native  of  that  State,  and  active  in 
the  struggle  for  American  independence  from  the 
British  crown.  It  is  a  family  tradition  that  Moses 
Stacy's  grandfather  was  also  a  prominent  military 
man,  engaged  in  the  defen.se  of  the  colonies  from 
Indian  depredations.  Joan  Kimball,  wife  of  Moses 
Stacy,  was  born  in  Ashford,  Conn.,  and  died  at 
Glen  Ellyn.  111.,  on  Christmas  Day  of  1889,  at 
the  advanced  age  of  eighty-six  years.  She  was  a 
lineal  descendant,  through  her  mother,  of  Gen. 
Joseph  Warren,  the  hero  of  Bunker  Hill. 

When  a  \oung  man,  Mo.ses  Stacy  went  to  Cole- 
brook,  N.  H.,  where  he  was  emploxed  as  one  of 
the  minutemen,  guarding  the  Canadian  bound- 
ary. After  a  residence  of  five  years  there,  he  re- 
turned to  his  native  town,  where  he  was  married. 
He  subsequently  dwelt  five  years  at  vStratton.  Yt., 
whence  he  moved  to  A.shford,  Cattaraugus  County, 
N.  Y.,  where  another  sojourn  of  five  years  was 
made. 

In  1835,  Mr.  Stacy  set  out  with  his  family  for 
the  new  West,  in  company  with  a  neighbor 
named  Kidder.  They  took  passage  on  a  sailing- 
ves-sel  at  Buffalo,  and  arrived  at  Chicago  in  Au- 
gust. Their  objective  point  was  Hennepin,  but 
a  few  days'  travel  by  team  among  the  ague- 
afflicted  pioneers  of  the  lUinois  Yalley  satisfied 
Mr.  Stacy  that  he  did  not  want  to  settle  there, 
and  he  parted  from  his  fellow-travelers  and 
turned  back.      His    attention   was  directed   by   a 


PORTRAIT   WI1  TUOr.RAI'HlCAL   KIXURU 


'  r 


settler  near  Downer's  Grove  lo  tla  ..^i...  >,,-,.., 
the  upiKT  waliTs  of  the  Ivtst  Kranch  of  Dul'a^c 
River,  and  lit  left  hi>  family  with  lii>  li<is|iital>lc 
guide,  and  set  out  on  foot  to  UM)k  the  ix)nnlrv 
over.  He  stKui  found  a  location  to  his  liking 
near  the  present  village  of  (Uen  Hllyn.  and 
brought  his  family  here.  He  ereitetl  his  first 
log  cahin  tm  the  site  n«>\v  ocenpieil  by  the  spacious 
and  hanilsonic  residence  <f  his  v>n,  I'hilo  \V. 
Stacy  isce  hiogniphy  in  this  work),  on  sei-tion 
1 1,  Milton  Townshiji.  For  some  time  he  kejrt  a 
hotel  at  what  was  known  in  early  days  as  Dul'age 
Center  ( afterward  and  .still  calle<l  Stacy  "s  Corners) , 
hut  his  prindpal  (xxnuwtion  was  farming.  He 
was  an  active  mcnjlxT  of  the  Mclhodi.st  Church 
in  his  later  years,  and  adhered  to  the  |)rinciples 
promulgated  l>y  the  Whig  and  afterward  the  Re- 
publican party,  in  (xilitical  ]>olic\ .  At  the  organi- 
zation «»f  the  school  districts  of  the  township  he 
acted  as  Commis-sioner  for  that  pnrjxise.  After  a 
residence  here  of  tliirty-six  years,  having  excee<l- 
e<l  by  five  the  allotted  years  of  man,  he  j)as,sed 
away  at  his  home  at  Stacy's  Comers  in  1870. 
His  offspring  consiste<i  of  three  sons.  Kimball, 
the  eldest,  died  at  Stacy's  Corners  at  the  age  of 
twenty -two,  from  the  effects  of  a  kick  by  a  horse. 
While  at  Ashford.  N.  Y..  the  second  fell  over  a 
d<x»rstep  at  the  age  of  one  year,  receiving  fatal 
injuries.  Mention  of  the  third  has  already  lieen 
made  in  this  article. 


1^>^[ 


(l.LIAM  Hi:NRVJOHNS(JN,.>fWhealon. 
>  among  the  early  settlers  of  DuPage  Conn- 
ly,   and  is  a  widely-known  and   resix-cte»l 
citizen.      He  is  a  descendant  of  an  old  Mas.s:ichu 
setts  family,  dating  l»ack  to  the  tune  of  the  I'il 
grims.      HLs  grandfather.  Jonah  Johnson,  lived  at 
N«»rtli  .-Vdams.  Mass. .  a«id  was  ver>  active  in  the 
War   of   1812    in    pursuing    smugglers  along  the 
Canadian    frontier.     Un    one  mvasiun,    his  horse 
having  fallen  on  a  bridge,  a  troop  of  British  cav 
airy  nnle  over  it.  cruslnng  it  to  a  jellx       He  «lc 
tennined  to  have  rcxengc,  and  shadow eti  the  part), 
until    he  liud  an  opportunity  tu  seir.e  one  u(  the 


British  horses,  which  he  diil  He  tiNm  it  t<<  inr 
American  lino  and  recet\'e<i  u  good  price  for  it. 
with  promise  of  as  much  for  on>  future  capture 
He  pro\e*l  a  serious  annoyance  to  the  enem\ 
thereafter,  oipturiiig  many  horses,  which  were 
prom|>tly  made  use  of  in  recniiting  the  American 
cavalr>  .  He  was  a  fanner  and  charcoal  burner 
in  times  of  |)eacx-,  and  went  to  Carthage  \  Y  . 
nlMiut  1S18.  dying  there  at  a  gooil  age 

Alvah  Henry.  s«in  of  Jonah  JohiiMtn  «.i>  ■hiih 
ill  North  Adams,  Mass.,  in  1K06,  and  was  twelve 
years  old  when  he  went  with  his  father  t4»  Car- 
thage. The  homestead  is  within  the  luiiits  of  the 
village  of  that  name.  Like  his  father,  Alvah  en 
gaged  in  farming  and  burning  charcoal.  He  was 
active  in  the  management  of  |i<iil  affairs,  and  a 
leader  in  the  councils  of  the  Democratic  |>arty. 
He  died  at  the  age  of  fifty  years,  <in  January  6. 
i8.s'<.  His  wife,  Philinda,  was  a  daughter  of 
Isaiah  Cixilidge,  a  prominent  citi/.eii  of  Peru. Clin- 
ton Couiit> .  N  Y..  where  she  was  l>orii.  She 
died  March  1.  1849,  leaving  three  sons.  The 
eldest  of  these,  Franklin  B. ,  died  on  the  home 
stead  ill  Carthage.  The  xoungest.  Martin  B.. 
now  resides  in  Chii-ago.  The  latter  was  a  ticket- 
seller  and  gate-kee|»er  at  the  Columbian  Kxpttsi- 
tionin  Chicago  for  six  months  and  five  tla>s. 

William  H.  Johnson,  second  son  of  Alvah  ami 
Philinda  Johnson,  was  Ixirn  in  Carthage.  Jeffer 
son  County.  N.  Y.,  on  the  joth  of  August.  1S37. 
He  passed  his  childluNtd  there,  attending  the 
otmmoii  schools  and  Carthage  .'Kcadenn  .  .-Vt  six- 
teen years  of  age,  he  Itegaii  teaching  hi-Ik>oI  in 
winter,  while  ctMitinuing  to  assist  his  father  in 
tilling  the  fann  in  summer.  Having  u  genius  for 
the  use  of  tools,  he  alMj  acquired  a  kiiowletlge  of 
the  car]K.-nter's  trade. 

In  the  fall  of  iKs6.  Mr.  Johnson  lieeainc'  a  resi- 
dent of  Dul'age  Coiint\  si-ttliiig  at  Fullersburg. 
near  the  suitheasterii  ojrner.  Here  he  taught 
school  and  worked  at  Imilding  fur  two  \  cars  He 
then  removol  to  Daiib>  <  now  (ileii  I\ll\n>,  and 
was  (KX-upied  in  the  same  manner  In  the  spring 
of  1864  he  entered  the  one-hundrcd-<la>  serx'iix 
as  a  ineinlKT  of  Com|>iiii\  H.  One  Hundred  and 
Fort>  first  Illinois  N'olunteers.  and  in  February 
following    he  cnlistctl  in  Cum|Kiii>  C,  Dne  Hun 


338 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   kECORD. 


dred  and  Fifty-third  Regiment.     He  was  stationed 

during  his  service  at  Columbus,  Ky.,  and  TuUa- 
homa  and  Memphis,  Tenn.,  doing  garrison  dut\-. 
His  .sen'ice  in  the  first  regiment  lasted  five 
months,  and  in  the  second  for  seven  months,  the 
clo.se  of  ho.stilities  ending  it.  He  had  in  the  in- 
terim of  the  first  and  second  enlistment,  in  Oc- 
tober, 1S64,  removed  his  home  to  Wheaton,  where 
he  has  dwelt  ever  since,  except  three  years — from 
1870  to  1873 — when  he  was  engaged  in  farming 
at  ^lomence.  111.  P'or  a  short  time  he  was  en- 
gaged at  engine  work  at  Chicago,  but  for  the  last 
seventeen  years  he  has  conducted  a  repair  and 
wood-working  shop,  giving  mcst  of  his  attention 
to  wagon- work. 

Mr.  John.son  is  an  active  factor  in  the  affairs  of 
the  local  Democratic  organization,  having  been 
either  Chairman  or  Secretan,-  of  the  Countv  Cen- 
tral Committee  for  many  years.  He  has  never 
asked  for  an  office  for  himself  but  is  now  .serving 
as  Deputy  vSheriff,  as  the  duties  of  his  office  do  not 
interfere  with  his  business  and  are  performed  at 
home.  Before  the  war  he  was  an  active  Odd  Fel- 
low, and  was  at  one  time  District  Deput\  .  He  is 
a  Knight  Templar  Mason,  being  a  charter  mem- 
ber of  Siloam  Commander}-  No.  54,  of  Oak  Park. 
He  was  ten  years  Ma.ster  of  the  local  Blue  Lodge, 
and  one  of  the  organizers  of  the  Royal  Arch  Chap- 
ter, .ser\-ing  as  its  fourth  High  Priest,  and  hold- 
ing that  office  ten  years  altogether — seven  years 
of  that  time  consecutively.  In  religious  belief 
lie  .sympathizes  with  the  Methodist  Church,  his 
orincipal  creed  being  the  payment  of  one  hundred 
?ents  on  the  dollar,  in  all  cases  keeping  his  agree- 
ments, and  giving  attention  to  his  own  business, 
:o  the  exclusion  of  other  people's.  He  is  a  gen- 
ial, approachable  gentleman,  and  inspires  all 
with  whom  he  comes  in  contact  with  confidence 
in  his  integrity. 

Mr.  Johnson  was  married  on  July  i,  1861,  to 
Miss  Cynthia  V.  Kelsey,  a  native  of  Theresa, 
Jefferson  County,  N.  Y.,  and  daughter  of  John 
A.  and  Perlina  ( Smith  )  Kelsey,  of  Scotch  and 
Engli.sh  descent.  She  died  August  23,  1877, 
leaving  a  son  and  daughter.  The  first,  Frank 
T.,  is  now  a  conductor  on  the  \'anBuren  Street 
line  of  cars  in  Chicago;    and    the  second,  Minnie, 


is  the  wife  of  C.  F.  Davis,  a  Downer's  Grove  mer- 
chant. May  16,  1882,  Mr.  Johnson  married  Sa- 
rah O.  Hale,  who  died  childless,  March  18,  1889. 
September  29,  1892,  Mr.  Johnson  was  for  the 
third  time  married,  the  bride  being  Elsie,  daugh- 
ter of  Isaac  and  Mary  (Battles)  Ward,  of  East 
Putney,  Vt. ,  but  now  residents  of  Chicago.  Mrs. 
Johnson  was  born  in  Wheaton,  and  in  November, 
1^93.  presented  her  husband  with  a  son,  who  is 
named  William  Henry. 


[=~ 


NENRV  Y.  \-AUGHAN,  one  of  the  promi- 
nent farmers  of  Naperville  Township,  resid- 
ing on  .section  19,  is  numbered  among  the 
pioneer  .settlers  of  DuPage  County  of  1836.  Few 
have  longer  witnessed  its  growth  and  upbuilding 
than  he.  He  has  seen  its  wild  land  transformed 
into  beautiful  homes  and  farms,  and  during  his 
residence  here  towns  and  villages  have  sprung  up 
and  have  grown  into  thriving  cities.  In  the  work 
of  upbuilding  he  has  ever  taken  a  commendable 
intere.st,  and  has  furthered  it  in  all  possible  ways. 
Mr.  \'aughan  is  a  native  of  New  York.  He 
was  born  in  Chemung  County,  November  4,  1818, 
and  is  descended  from  good  old  Revolutionary 
.stock.  The  grandfather,  Frederick  \'aughan, 
and  the  great-grandfather  both  aided  the  colonies 
in  their  struggle  for  independence,  and  Frederick 
Yaughan,  Jr.,  the  father  of  our  subject,  was  a 
drummer  in  the  War  of  1812.  He  was  born  in 
Connecticut,  and  married  Trval  Beebe,  a  native 
of  the  same  State,  and  a  daughter  of  Abel  Beebe, 
who  served  in  the  War  of  1812.  After  some 
years'  residence  in  the  Empire  State,  the  parents 
of  our  subject  bade  adieu  to  their  old  home,  and 
in  1837  journeyed  westward  to  Illinois,  locating 
in  DuPage  County,  where  they  spent  their  re- 
maining days. 

H.  Y.  \'aughan  is  the  third  in  order  of  birth  in 
a  family  of  nine  children,  four  of  whom  grew  to 
manhood  and  womanhood.  His  educational  priv- 
ileges were  meagre,  and  the  advantages  of  his 
ryouth  in  any  direction  were  not  of  the  most  ex- 
tensive.    He  remained  in  New  York  until  eigh- 


J.  H.  Ashley. 

iPhoto'd  by  Mills.) 


FOKTkAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD 


Mt 


teen  years  of  age,  and  then  canic  to  thiN  cxmntv 
with  his  parents,  with  wlmni  he  s|K-nt  tlic  smx^t^l 
injj  seven  years  of  his  life. 

Mr.  X'an^han  was  then  niarrieil.  at  the  ajje  of 
twenty -five  years,  the  lady  of  his  ihoict:  lieinjj 
Miss  Sarah  Minier.  a  native  t)f  ChcnuniK  Connty. 
N  V  Their  union  was  celebrated  in  1S43,  and 
unto  them  were  Uini  five  children,  threi-  sons  and 
two  daughters;  Ge«)rKe  L..  now  of  Nebraska; 
Byron,  at  hunie;  Ida.  wife  of  Henr\  Bartholo- 
mew, the  present  Mayor  at  Hatavia.  111.;  Kdson. 
a  fanner  of  Nai^erville  Township:  and  Kva.  at 
home.  The  mother  of  this  family  was  calle<l  to 
her  final  rest  »>n  the  J7th  of  August,  iS«y. 

At  the  time  of  his  marriage  Mr.  \aunhau  had 
no  capital.  He  rented  a  fann.  upon  which  he  Ix.-- 
gan  his  domestic  life,  there  making  his  home  for 
atxmt  six  months,  after  which  he  located  ujion  a 
place  of  ten  acres.  He  workeil  early  and  late, 
and  as  the  years  passetl  his  financial  res«mrces 
were  increaseil  .\s  he  found  it  ix)ssihle  he  kept 
adding  to  his  land  until  at  one  lime  he  ow  ned  two 
hundred  acres,  but  he  has  since  given  nnich  of 
this,  to  his  children.  Thoroughly  understanding 
his  business  and  carefully  attending  to  all  details, 
he  achieved  through  his  own  eflTorts  a  well-de- 
served success.  At  one  time  he  was  a  menilK-r  of 
the  Bapli.st  Church  in  Aurora,  and  serve<l  as  an 
officer.  In  politics,  he  has  long  supporte<i  the 
Republican  party,  and  has  filled  the  office  of  Road 
master;  The  gre:iter  part  of  his  life  has  here 
l)een  pas.se<l.  and  his  years  have  lx*en  well  and 
worthily  spent  in  faithful  performance  of  duty. 


_=i. 


^^^'\ 


e\<  J  H  ASHLKV.  a  dentist  of  Wheaton. 
-tancLs  high  in  his  profes.sion  and  in  the 
Mjcial  circles  of  the  place.  He  was  l)orn  in 
Marengo.  McHenr>  County.  111..  Januan-  1. 
1H34.  and  is  a  wm  of  John  H.  and  Charlotte 
•  Weetl  I  Ashley.  His  grandfather.  George  W 
Ashley,  was  Ixint  in  Rutlan<l  County.  Vt.,  and 
his  wife,  whose  maiden  name  was  Sallic  Page, 
was  a  native  of  the  Kmjiire  State.  He  wa.s  a 
(anuer  by  occupation,  and  in  1850  emigrated  to 


Kankakee  Counly.  Ill  The  f.ithcr  of  our  sub 
jtvt  was  a  c-aqjentcr  and  omtructor.  and  was  sue 
cessfully  following  thai  ocxni|Nition  in  Kankakee 
when  he  met  with  an  accident  that  resulted  in  his 
death  s«ime  two  or  three  days  later  His  wife 
then  retnovcd  to  Marengo,  where  our  subject 
was  Ixini. 

The  UiK-tor  never  knew  a  father's  protection 
and  care,  as  Mr.  Ashley  die<I  two  months  before 
the  birth  of  his  son.  His  early  years  wep 
on  a  farm  near  Marengo,  and  in  the  publi. 
of  that  place.  He  worked  in  the  fields  during 
the  sunnner.  and  spent  the  winter  in  tow  n  attend- 
ing schiH>l.  during  which  time  he  worked  for  his 
lK)ard  I^ter  he  taught  school  for  three  years, 
after  which  he  entere<i  the  Gem  City  Business 
College  of  yuincy.  111.,  from  wliich  institution 
he  was  graduated  in  1877. 

The  Doctor  began  his  active  pn.iessional  ca- 
reer in  Marengo  with  Dr.  J.  Q.  Adams,  a  gradu- 
ate t)f  the  Philadelphia  Dental  College,  whose 
office  he  afterwards  txmght  In  Octolier,  1879. 
he  removed  to  Wheaton  and  eslabli>he<l  an  office. 
Feeling  the  need  of  further  study  and  iastruction 
in  the  latest  methcxis  and  improvements  of  his 
profession,  he  entere<l  the  fanious  Chii-ago  Col 
lege  of  Dental  Surgery,  taking  a  complete  practi- 
tioner" s  post-graduate  course  He  is  a  man  who 
is  not  merely  content  with  what  he  has  achievetl 
in  the  i)ast,  but  steadily  strives  to  attain  greater 
knowle<lge,  an<l  to  that  end  keeps  up  a  ctmstant 
study  and  inquiry  into  the  Ix-st  niethixls.  He  has 
one  of  the  finest  dental  libraries  in  the  State. 

On  the  ist  of  Seplemlxrr.  |}<79.  occurred  the 
marriage  of  Dr.  Ashley  and  Miss  Marian  Mills, 
of  Marengo.  McIIenrx  County.  The  lady  is  a 
daughter  of  James  Mills,  who  for  years  has  lieen 
a  ver\  prominent  citi/en  <>(  .McHenry  County 
Five  children  grai-e  their  union,  Nannie,  Harr)-, 
Clarence.  Carrie  and  Clifford,  who  are  all  yet  un 
der  the  |>arental  nx»f. 

On  the  morning  of  Februar>-  j8,  i«86.  the 
residence  of  the  Hon  I..  I.  Hialt  was  burglarized 
and  the  inmates  of  the  house  terribl>  frightene<l 
b\  the  displa\  of  revolvers  and  the  threats  of  the 
masked  burglars  As  soon  as  practicable  after 
the  departure  of  the  thieves.  Mr    Hialt  hurried  to 


342 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


the  residence  of  Dr.  Ashley  and  informed  him  of 
what  had  transpired.  The  Doctor  quickly  armed 
himself  with  his  shotgun  and  revolver,  and.  or- 
ganizing a  posse  of  four  good  men,  started  on  the 
trail  of  the  fleeing  burglars.  He  traced  them  five 
miles  through  the  snow  to  Turner  Junction, 
where  they  were  captured  after  a  desperate  fight, 
during  which  several  shots  were  fired,  one  of  the 
rascals  being  filled  with  shot  from  his  heels  to  the 
crown  of  his  head.  The  burglars  were  landed  in 
the  DuPage  County  Jail  and  afterwards  tried  and 
sentenced  to  the  penitentiary-  for  twenty-five 
years.  This  incident  brought  Dr.  Ashley  ver)- 
prominently  before  the  people  of  DuPage  Count>- , 
and  at  the  solicitation  of  his  many  friends  he  con- 
sented to  become  a  candidate  for  Sheriff.  He  was 
nominated  on  the  Republican  ticket  July  30, 
1886,  was  duly  elected  the  following  No\ember, 
and  served  four  years,  his  term  expiring  Decem- 
ber I,  1890.  He  filled  the  office  not  only  with 
credit  to  himself  but  with  honor  to  the  people  of 
the  whole  county.  His  record  for  the  capture  of 
burglars  and  horse-thieves  during  his  term  of  of- 
fice is  without  a  parallel  in  DuPage  County.  He 
succeeded  in  capturing  his  man  in  nearh-  e^•ery 
case,  and  only  two  horses  were  stolen  while  he 
was  SheriflTthat  were  not  recovered.  He  has  a  ver\- 
large  collection  of  burglars'  tools  and  appliances 
as  mementoes  of  the  large  number  of  that  class  of 
gentlemen  who  were  entertained  by  him  during 
his  term  of  ofiice.  He  also  bears  the  distinction 
of  being  the  only  Sheriff  that  has  ser\-ed  the  coun- 
ty during  the  past  twenty-five  years  who  has  not 
allowed  a  prisoner  to  escape  him.  It  is  hardly 
necessary  to  state  that  the  Doctor  is  a  ver\-  stanch 
supporter  of  the  Republican  nominees  and  princi- 
ples. 

Dr.  Ashley  is  a  member  of  Wheaton  Lodge 
No.  269,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  which  he  has  been 
Worshipful  Master  since  1890;  he  is  also  a  member 
of  Doric  Chapter  No.  166,  R.  A.  M.,  of  Turner. 
111. ;  and  of  Sylvan  Commandery  No.  54,  K.  T. , 
of  Oak  Park.  He  also  belongs  to  Wheaton 
Camp  No.  488,  M.  W.  A.;  Orchid  Lodge  No. 
331,  K.  P.,  and  the  National  Union.  He  has 
held  all  the  offices  in  the  Modem  Woodmen 
Lodge,  was  Venerable  Counsel  for  three  successive 


terms,  has  filled  the  principal  offices  in  the 
Knights  of  Pythias,  and  is  at  present  the  Chan- 
cellor Commander  of  Orchid  Lodge.  The  Doc- 
tor and  his  wife  are  also  members  of  Henrietta 
Chapter,  O.  E.  S.  In  personal  appearance  he 
is  of  commanding  mien,  and  in  manner  is  so 
genial  that  he  readily  wins  friends. 


(TOHN   FISCHER,  of  Lombard,  is  one  of  the 

I  leading  business  men  of  this  place,  and  is 
\Z/  also  ser\-ing  as  Justice  of  the  Peace.  With 
the  upbuilding  of  the  community  he  has  been 
prominently  identified.  He  was  born  in  Jarmen. 
Prussia,  September  30,  1849,  ^"d  is  a  son  of  John 
and  Louisa  (Wittstocki  Fischer.  His  father  was 
a  native  of  Mecklenburg-Schwerin,  and  was  a 
black-smith  by  trade.  Our  subject  was  the  onh- 
child  of  John  and  Loviisa  Fischer,  but  the  mother 
had  three  sons  and  a  daughter  by  a  former  mar- 
riage, her  first  husband  having  been  August 
Schneppenhauer.  Two  sons.  August  and  Charles, 
came  to  America  with  our  subject  in  1867. 

John  Fischer  was  educated  in  the  private 
schools  of  his  native  land.  After  crossing  the 
Atlantic,  he  worked  in  a  blacksmith  shop  in  St. 
Charles,  111.,  for  two  years,  and  then  went  to 
Chicago,  where  he  was  employed  in  a  large  car- 
riage factory.  In  1873.  he  made  a  vi.sit  to  Ger- 
many, and  while  there  his  father  died.  His 
mother  passed  away  two  years  later.  On  his  re- 
turn to  this  country,  Mr.  Fischer  spent  one  year 
in  a  carriage  shop  in  Elgin,  and  in  1874  he  es- 
tablished a  blacksmith  and  carriage  shop  in  Lom- 
bard, in  company  with  his  brother,  but  he  soon 
after  became  .sole  proprietor,  and  still  continues 
the  business  alone. 

On  the  30th  of  April,  1885,  Mr.  Fischer  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Mary  Gregor,  a  na- 
tive of  Schneideniuehl,  Prus.sia,  and  a  daughter  of 
Paul  Gregor,  who  now  resides  in  Lombard. 
They  had  four  children,  but  Amanda  is  now  de- 
ceased. Fred,  Paul  and  Alma  are  still  with  their 
parents. 

For  ten  years  past,   Mr.  Fischer  has  ser\'cd  as 


PORTRAIT   AN"  "lOr.RAPHICAI,   RKCORD 


343 


blc  ami  faithUiI  oftu'rr.  For  inaiiv  \iMr>>  hi-  ha 
bet?n  a  niriiilKT  of  the  \'illat;e  Council,  aii<l  for 
two  \car>.  scr\ctl  as  its  I'rcsident  In  |Militii-s. 
he  was  fonncrly  a  Rc]>ulilit.'an,  Intt  is  now  intlc- 
pendent.  In  ixjnnci'tiun  with  his  other  business 
inten-sts.  he  is  President  of  and  a  stoi'kh«>lder  in 
the  l.tinilKird  Hotter  and  Chct-s<.-  Ass»K-intion.  and 
is  a  stuclcholder  in  the  I^unttmrd  Pen-herun  and 
French  Ctwch  Horsi-  Asst>ciation.  of  which  he 
was  a\so  SeiTetarA  anil  Treasurer  for  several 
years.  He  owns  soine  valuable  real  estate  in 
Colorado.  When  he  first  arrivetl  in  Chicago,  he 
had  but  55.  but  with  characteristic  energy  he  Ix- 
gan  work,  and  has  steadily  pursued  his  upward 
way.  until  he  is  now  at  the  head  of  a  j»<»otl  busi- 
ness, and  owns  stiK.-k  in  several  coiicenis  which 
yield  him  a  good  income.  Although  he  never 
attended  an  English  school,  he  is  now  one  of  the 
most  intelligent  and  well-informed,  as  well  as  one 
of  the  most  pRisperous.  citizens  of  the  county. 
HLs  example  is  well  worthy  of  emulation,  and 
should  encourage  others  to  reneweil  efforts  wlu). 
like  himself,  have  to  begin  life  amid  adverse  cir- 
ctnnstances. 


l^r^f^l 


*yRA  HERRICK.  a  pioneer  of  Du Page  County. 
I  was  l)orn  in  Barre.  \'t.,  March  4,  1801.  His 
X,  father.  Col.  John  Herrick.  ser\'ed  with  Gen. 
Ethan  Allen  in  the  Revolutionary  army.  Col. 
Herrick  was  married  at  Salent.  Mass..  to  IJelxjrah 
Pettengill.  a  native  of  that  State.  He  was  a 
miller,  and  lost  his  life  through  the  fall  of  his 
mill  in  a  freshet  at  Barre.  Jinie  22.  iSoS.  Of  his 
eight  children.  Ira  was  the  sixth.  All  live<l  tin 
til  iS'>3.  and  all  but  two  arc  now  decease*!. 

Ira  Herrick  was  bound  out  on  the  death  ol  Ins 
father  to  a  farmer  name<l  Holden.  and  received 
very  little  education.  At  the  age  of  seventeen 
he  iK'gan  a  four-years  apprenticeshiji  at  the  car- 
jxMiter  s  trade  with  an  elder  brother.  John  Her- 
rick. who  wa.s  a  Captain  of  militia.  He  worked 
as  a  jounieyman  after  ctnnpleting  the  trade,  and 
startetl  a  i>hop  at  Burlington.  Vt..  which  wa^  cun- 


.id  by  rirc  in  Febniarx .  iH;\      Af\' 
•  1    he   resolveil  to  move  West  to  reci:; 
fortunes,  and  .started  in  a  cutter,  in  wliich  he  rode 
to  BiifT.ilo       Here   he  w«»rke<l  at  his  trade  ir  ■ 
Ixiat  started  fur  Chiintgo.  when   he  took   pa^-    ,. 
arriving  at  Chicago  in  May.     At  that  time  there 
were   but   two  frame   houses  on   the   site    of  the 
presint  western  metropolis,  and  the  liodies  of  the 
victims  of  the  great  nia.ssacre  were  still  lying  on 
the  iK-ach  when   he  arrive<l.      He  at  oniv  set  to 
work  at  building,  and   in   the  mean  time  made  a 
land  claim  at   Downer's  Grove       In  the  fall  he 
ma<le    a    jHrdestrian    tour    with    a    frieml.    Al\ah 
Fowler,  to  look  at  laiul.  and.  finding  the  vicinity 
of  Warrenville  more  to  his  taste,  threw  up  his 
previous  claim   and   securetl  a  part  of  se«.-tion  ;6, 
town  39,  range  9.  which  he  sul>se<iuentl.\    hel]>ed 
to  organize  and  name  as  Winfield.     For  the  firtt 
ten   years  he   wa.-"  chiefl\    engagetl    in   building, 
meantime  improving  his  land  as  he  found   means 
and  opportunity,  and  he  did  not  wholly  abandon 
building   operations  until   advancing   years   com- 
jH.-lle*l  him  to  give  up  work   altogether.      His  de 
misc  occurred  on  the  30th  of  August,  1878,  in  the 
seventy -eighth  year  of  his  age. 

At  I'nderhill.  Vt..  June  i6,  1825.  .Mr  Herrick 
married  Miss  Maliel  Eliza  Galusha.  whowasboni 
in  Burlington.  Vt..  April  i.v  1X01  ■  Her  parents. 
Ezra  Galusha  and  Malx-l  Baniey.  were  married 
at  Williston.  Vt.,  a  town  adjoining  Burlington, 
and  Were  prol»ably  natives  of  that  vicinity.  The 
Galusha  family  is  a  noted  one  in  New  England, 
having  furnished  a  Governor  of  N'ermont  and  a 
famous  I'niversalist  clergyman.  Eight  children 
were  given  to  .Mr.  and  Mrs.  Herrick.  who  were 
as  follows:  Ellen,  widow  of  Hiram  CruM,  rtrsid- 
iiig  at  White  Water,  Wis.:  George  Jackson,  a 
wealthy  farmer  at  I^-land.  III..  I.ncna  I...  wife  of 
Norman  Flansen,  of  Franklin  Grove.  Ill,:  Au- 
gusta, who  died  at  the  latter  place  while  the  wife 
of  Charles  Hansen.  Sarah  S>phia.  wife  of  Daniel 
Mulford,  a  wealthy  resident  of  Reddick,  III.; 
Maliel  Jo:in.  who  taught  music  and  drawing,  and 
die-.l  unuiarTic<l.  John  Hiram,  who  mvupies  the 
homestead  farm :  and  Mnria  Jane,  who  died  at  the 
age  of  nine  years 

Mr    Herrick  was  cluiroctrrizcd  by  hiAUcighlMts 


344 


PORTRAIT  AXD  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


as  a  man  of  unflinching  integrity  and  sound  judg- 
ment.    Tenacious  of  his  opinions,  and  mindful  of 
his  rights,  he  would  not  tolerate  any  infraction  of 
either,   and   was  ready  to  maintain  them   at  all 
times.     He  was  an  earnest  believer  in  the  doc- 
trine of  universal  salvation,  and  would  argue  on 
religion  or  politics  at  any  time.      Being  possessed 
of  intelligence,  and  being  a  wide  reader,  he  was 
able  to  discuss  questions  of  human  interest  with 
much  ability-  and  force.     In  early  life,  he  acted 
with  the  Democratic  party,  but  deserted  it  when 
the  question  of  slavery  became  prominent  in  pol- 
itics.    He  voted  for  John  P.  Hale,  Free-soil  can- 
didate for  President,  and  adhered  to  the  Republi- 
can party  from  its  organization.     He  was  a  mem- 
ber of  the   Universalist   society   at  Warrenville, 
and  helped  build  the  church  of  that  denomina- 
tion at   Wheaton,   where  he  became   a  member. 
As  a  means  of  fitting  his  children   for  intelligent 
citizenship,  he  gave  them  all  a  good  chance  for 
education,   and   several   of  them   proved   efficient 
school  teachers.     He  was  several  times  called  to 
serve  on  petit  and  grand  juries  at  Chicago  in  the 
earlv  days,  when  DuPage  formed  a  part  of  Cook 
County,  and  made  the  trips  to  and  fro  on  foot. 
The  neighborhood  of  Warrenville  was  then  known 
as  the  "Yankee   Settlement."   and   its  residents 
were  frequenth-  called  upon  to  assist  in  the  man- 
agement of  local  affairs,  in  which  the  intelligence 
and  stability  of  Mr.  Herrick  ser\-ed  well. 

John  Hiram  Herrick  was  born  April  3,  1838, 
on  the  farm  where  he  now  resides  in  Winfield 
Township,  and  which  has  always  been  his  home. 
In  his  childhood  he  was  taught  by  his  mother,  a 
woman  of  much  intelligence  and  of  strong  char- 
acter. He  attended  a  seminary-  at  Warrenville.  and 
on  the  organization  of  the  home  school  district,  he 
attended  there  for  a  time.  In  1856-57,  he  was  a 
student  of  lUinois  Institute,  now  Wheaton  Col- 
lege, and  afterward  entered  Lombard  University, 
at  Galesburg,  which  he  left  in  the  sophomore 
year.  His  business  has  always  been  the  cultiva- 
tion of  the  farm  on  which  he  has  reared  and  edu- 
cated his  family.  He  adheres  to  the  precepts  of 
his  father,  and  gives  his  attention  to  the  manage- 
ment of  his  own  affairs,  leaving  public  concerns 
to  others  more  ambitious  than  himself 


At  Galesburg.  111.,  July  17.  1S67,  Mr.  Herrick 
was  married  to  Miss  Mrginia  Hughes,  a  native  of 
Pocahontas  County.  Va. .  as  were  her  parents, 
James  Hughes  and  Lucretia  Brindley.  They  set- 
tled in  LaGrange  County,  Ind.,  in  1834.  Five 
children  were  bom  to  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Herrick. 
namely:  George  Ira.  a  civil  engineer  at  Aurora, 
and  a  graduate  of  the  literarx'  course  at  Wheaton 
College:  Mabel  Lucretia.  a  graduate  of  the  class- 
ical course  at  Wheaton  College,  who  died  at  the 
age  of  twenty-one:  Ralph  Lowel,  an  architect,  re- 
siding with  his  parents:  and  Frank  Earl  and 
Charles  Edward,  twins.  The  latter  died  in  child- 
hood of  diphtheria. 


UGEXE  G.  SIMPSON.  M.  D..  one  of  the 
^  leading  physicians  and  a  prominent  and  en- 
terprising citizen  of  Naperville,  was  torn 
on  the  2ist  of  October,  1865,  in  Grant  City, 
Worth  County,  Mo.,  and  is  the  fourth  in  order  of 
birth  in  a  family  of  eight  children,  whose  parents 
were  Joseph  and  Martha  (Deoren)  Simpson. 
The  family  is  of  Irish  extraction.  The  father,  a 
native  of  Pennsylvania,  spent  the  days  of  his 
boyhood  and  youth  in  the  Keystone  State,  and 
there  remained  until  his  marriage.  During  the 
late  war  he  sensed  his  countrv-  as  a  defender 
of  the  Old  Flag.  He  now  resides  in  Grant  City. 
Mo.  His  wife,  who  was  born  in  Kentucky,  was 
of  English  extraction,  her  great-grandfather,  a 
native  of  England,  having  crossed  the  Atlantic 
in  Colonial  days,  and  founded  the  family  in 
America.  Her  death  occurred  on  the  20th  of 
September,  189 1. 

Dr.  Simpson  remained  upon  the  home  farm 
until  sixteen  years  of  age.  and  during  that  time 
became  familiar  with  the  duties  of  farm  life,  and 
with  those  of  the  district  .schools.  He  then  left 
home  to  acquire  a  more  complete  education,  and 
entered  the  Northwestern  University  ot  Stanberry, 
Mo. .  from  which  institution  he  was  graduated  in 
1886.  at  the  age  of  twenty-one  years.  He  theu 
turned  his  attention  to  the  profession  of  teaching, 
which    he  followed  for  three  years,    being  thus 


-iAz.^O'T,^    -^^^Z^^t/t-^i^ 


'<;^t/?^ 


TORTKAIT  AND  BIOC.RAPHICAI.    kl-LORI) 


employed   in    Missouri   fur  oiicyi._;         

Fairfield.  Tex.,  and  one  year  in  SpringficUl. 
Neb.  The  follo\vinj»  >ear  he  e«Jnaj;e«l  in  the 
study  lit  nif<lu-iiit-  under  a  pr.icticinjj  phy>ic-ian. 
and  in  1889  entcre<l  Rusli  Medical  C«>lle>;e  of 
Chic-ami.  from  which  he  \\a>  K'^>>*li>->te<l  in  the 
Clas.'s  of  \2.  Ininictlialely  aftiiw.u.l  lu  i.nm-  to 
Xaperville  and  opened  an  offii  t 

The   I>o<.-tor   is  a   wide- aw. i-  _; 

young  man.  and  although  hi-  .  ^-^ 

not  yet  cover  a  period  of  two  years,  he  has  al- 
read>  a  g<¥Kl  jtaying  practiitr.  whicli  is  constantly 
increasing.  He  jK>!«ses.scs  the  ncces.sary  <|ual 
ificaticms  for  a  successful  ami  brilliant  career. 
being  a  thorough  student,  ambitious,  and  one  who 
knows  that  earnest  effort  brings  >uc<.-ess.  In 
manner  he  is  pleasant  and  genial,  and  has  gaineti 
a  host  of  friends  in  this  ctnumunitv .  In  |>olitic>, 
he  is  a  stanch  Republi«.-an.  who  wannh  aiUi* 
cates  the  party  principles. 


'iir^l 


HON.  ELBKRT  HENRY  GARY,  second  son 
of  Era.stus  Oarj-.  one  of  the  most  successful 
attorneys  of  Chicago,  is  a  native  of  DnI'age 
County.  l>oni  near  the  village  of  \\arTen\ille.  Oc 
toberg,  1846,  a  year   pre\'ious   to  the  removal  of 
Mts  to    the    present    site   of  Whealon  ■  see 
;y  of  Erastus   Gar>  ■       He  attendcil  the 
public   schools   of  Wheaton.   and  the  college  for 
parts  of  two  years.      In   March.   IS' 
the  office  of   Yallette  &  CikI\  at  N    . 
began  the  study  of  law  and  remained  there  a  year. 
In  1.S67.  he  .       ■  !  from    the    law  .1 

oftheoldCli  iversity.  and  for  t 

after  that  was  Chief  r>eputy  Clerk  of  the  Superior 
Court  of  Co<"  He  then  1 

tiix-  of   his  y:  and  after  a  t; 

sociated  with  his  brother,   N.  E.  Gary,  this  con 
nection  continuing  for  ■      "  n 

years   of  this    time  i'..  ■  t 

preceptor.  Hon    H.  H.  Cody,  ex -Circuit  Judge  of 
DuPage  County,   the  style  being  Gary.  Cody  »S 
Gary. 

This  firm  was  disMilved  January  1.  iKi^o.  since 


alotic      Hei> 

o(   the   fiiirst  modern  otfai-r  •«tru(.tu- 

winch  means  m  !»•■   >•    -i  1     ■••  <   >•- 

finest  orti<.x->  .ind 

Hi-  'irv<i(e<l    mai- 

oisii; .4ud  he    i»    geuv....    .-■ 

iiumljer  of  lar^e  coqMiralituis       Not  m 

ne\s  in  I 

,    nerativi  ..  ,  ....: ....j... jv-k'  «•' 

I   and  pn>bably  n<Mie  have  reache<l  a  Urvrr  or  bct:< : 

His   suixx-ss  is    the    result  of  ..  1  and   the 

ability  to   grasp   large    mattei-  ,(»  tu  prr 

I   sent    them   with   forir  and  mi  -    to    the 

cxnirls       He    has    been  admitted    to    the    Initol 

.States  Supreme  Court  and  to  the  S'"-'—"  {.'nun 

of  Illinois,  and  to  many  of  the  coui'.  In- 

iliana     Miclui^an     \Vi»cotuun,    MiniicauU.    Iowa 

and  Mi.s.soun. 

At  the  age  of  twenty -four.  Mr.  Gar>'  wa»  elected 

President  of  the  Town    Counnl  <if  Wheaton    fill 
:    ing  that  |)osition  for  three    suix-cssne    tr-"  -     ■'•! 

he  was  elected  the  first  Mayor  of  the  im 

citN    in    1SN5.    o"  m    that 

I    terms.      In  iNHj  h  .LVtcd  Jui.^-     .  .    .i  ..,, 

I   County,  filling  the  office  twotemib.  or  until  i^w 

When  it  'in    i«Ks.    '■ 

circuit  ju   „  irruit  in  theM.:.    „ _.. 

didates  were  nominated    throughout   the   Stale 

Judge  (.ar\-  was   • 

able  competitors.  :  

failure  of  the  bill  to  pasK  the  Hooae  of  Keprr!>en 


tion  to  that  offiiv    (the  nominatioa   fur  which  he 


prevented  man>'  dei>iraMe  profcvtioiul  i-«>nur>  t       - 
••    •  •  ■  .1 

J      ..     '  -i-T  ..f  the  Chicago  liar 

Association,  the  State   Ba-  >tion.  and  the 

Nat:  ■  ■ 

tive  I 

of  the  Chicago  I.ibrai^  tion,  of  the  Mcth 

Knightkof  P\'th- 

.  ■*  . 

On  the  iht  of  October.   iH74.  the  fiiat  bank  ia 


346 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


Wheaton  was  opened  by  Miner.  Gary  &  Web- 
ster, and  at  tlie  end  of  a  year  and  a-half,  Messrs. 
Miner  and  Webster  withdrew.  Since  that  time  it 
has  been  conducted  by  Judge  Gary  and  Jesse  C. 
Wheaton,  Sr.,  under  the  name  of  Gan.-  &  Wheat- 
on, the  latter  taking  a  one-third  interest. 

In  1870,  Judge  Gary  married  Missjuha  Emily 
Graves,  a  native  of  this  count\-,  and  daughter  of 
Captain  Amos  C.  and  Mary  ( Buck )  Graves,  of  New 
England  and  New  York  birth  respectively  and 
English  ancestry.  Capt.  Graves  was  an  early  res- 
ident of  DuPage  County,  and  served  as  SherifiF 
several  years,  and  later  as  City  Marshal  of  Aurora, 
where  he  now  resides.  Two  daughters  complete 
the  family  of  Judge  and  Mrs.  Gary,  namely:  Ger- 
trude Winnogene  and  Bertha  Loui.se.  The  first 
is  the  wife  of  Harry  W.  Sutcliffe,  residing  in 
Wheaton. 

|IIJJAM  J.  LAIRD,  of  Naper\ille,  was 
born  in  this  city,  on  the  12th  of  April, 
1835,  and  is  therefore  numbered  among 
the  honored  pioneer  settlers  of  the  county,  with 
whose  hi.story  he  has  so'  long  been  identified. 
His  father,  William  Laird,  was  a  native  of  Erie, 
Pa.,  where  he  continued  to  reside  until  his  emi- 
gration to  Illinois,  in  1834.  Here  he  established 
an  Indian  trading-post  in  a  log  .store,  and  after- 
ward, by  the  request  of  Chief  Waupansie,  took 
up  a  claim  on  the  western  part  of  Aurora,  and 
removed  his  family  to  where  the  town  of  Mont- 
gomer>'  now  stands.  His  death  occurred  soon 
afterward.  On  both  sides  the  parents  were  of 
Scotch  descent.  The  mother  of  our  subject  bore 
the  maiden  name  of  Philinda  Stevens,  and  is  a 
native  of  Vermont.  She  now  makes  her  home 
with  her  son,  William  J.,  at  the  age  of  eighty- 
two  years.  She  came  of  one  of  the  old  families 
of  the  Green  Mountain  State.  In  the  Laird  fam- 
ily were  but  two  children,  the  brother  of  our  sub- 
ject being  Thomas  H.,  of  Maquoketa,  Iowa. 

William  J.  Laird  was  a  lad  of  tight  summers 
when  his  mother  married  the  second  time.  He 
remained  with  her  until  eighteen  years  of  age. 


and  then  commenced  to  earn  his  own  livelihood, 
serving  an  apprenticeship  to  the  harness-maker's 
trade,  which  bu.siness  he  followed  until  entering 
the  .service  of  his  country  during  the  late  war. 
Hardly  had  the  smoke  from  Ft.  Sumter's  guns 
cleared  away,  when  he  enlisted  at  the  three- 
months  call,  and  became  a  member  of  Company 
K,  Thirteenth  Illinois  Infantry.  In  1863  he  re- 
enlisted,  joining  the  Seventeenth  Illinois  Cav- 
alry. He  was  made  Second  Lieutenant,  and  soon 
afterward  was  promoted  to  First  Lieutenant.  He 
continued  in  the  service  until  the  clo.se  of  the 
war,  and  was  then  mustered  out,  in  1S66.  His 
duties  were  largely  fighting  with  bu.shwackers, 
and  in  1865  he  was  .sent  to  the  pilains,  where  he 
did  duty  until  the  clo.se  of  the  war. 

When  ho.stilities  had  ceased  and  Mr.  Laird 
was  peiniitted  to  return  to  his  home,  he  opened  a 
harness-shop  but  was  soon  afterward  burned  out. 
Not  long  afterward,  he  was  elected  City  Marshal, 
filling  the  office  for  many  years,  and  he  has  also 
filled  the  office  of  Constable,  and  .since  the  close 
of  the  war  has  been  in  the  employ  of  the  Chicago, 
Burlington  &  Quincy  Railroad  as  a  private  de- 
tective. Through  his  instrumentality  man\- 
guilty  ones  have  been  convicted  of  their  crimes 
and  sent  to  the  penitentiary.  He  possesses  an 
observing  eye  and  retentive  memory,  which  qual- 
ities have  been  of  ine.stimable  benefit  to  him  in 
his  service  as  a  detective. 

On  the  isl  of  Januani-,  1858,  .Mr.  Laird  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Marie  C.  V'o.sburg,  a  na- 
tive of  Milwaukee,  Wis.  Four  children  graced 
their  union,  but  one  daughter  died  at  the  age  of 
six  weeks,  and  Louie  L.  was  killed  on  the  Chi- 
cago, Burlington  &  yuinc\-  Railroad,  February 
16,  1882.  Arthur  W.,  the  eldest,  is  now  en- 
gaged in  the  jewelry  bu.siness,  and  Eddie  S.  is 
in  Aurora. 

Mr.  Laird  exerci.ses  his  right  of  franchise  in 
support  of  the  Republican  part\-.  In  his  social 
relations  he  is  connected  with  the  Odd  Fellows' 
Society,  and  with  Walter  Blanchard  Post  No. 
186,  G.  A.  R.,  of  which  he  is  an  honored  and 
esteemed  comrade.  He  has  been  a  most  success- 
ful detective,  finding  clews  where  none  would 
seem  to  exist  to  ordinary  men,  and  tracing  them 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


347 


until  the  guilty  parlies  were  secured.  His  long 
residence  in  this  ci>nnnunit\-  has  made  him  wide- 
ly known,  and  he  has  many  warm  friends 
throughout_ the  county. 


"=] 


QVI.VANIS  WHITE  MOFFATT.  a  pioneer 
?\  iif  DuPage  County  and  a  resident  of  Whea- 
C*y  ton,  was  born  in  Blooming  Grove,  Orange 
County.  X.  v.,  March  i,  1818,  and  is  a  son  of 
Thomas  and  Deborah  1  Helme )  Moflfatt,  who  were 
natives  of  the  same  community.  The  grandfather 
of  Thomas.  Samuel  MofFatt,  was  bom  in  Count\- 
Antrim.  Ireland,  and  emigrated  to  America  early 
in  the  eighteenth  century.  The  family  was  origin- 
ally of  Scotch  origin.  The  last-named  early  located 
on  the  farm  where  our  subject  was  born,  and 
there  reared  a  family  of  six  sons  and  seven  daugh- 
ters, one  of  whom,  William,  was  the  father  of 
Thomas  Moffatt.  Samuel  Moffatt  was  a  mason 
b3-  trade,  and  he  and  his  family  were  Presbyte- 
rians. He  came  to  America  on  the  same  ship  that 
brought  the  father  of  DeWitt  Clinton,  and  settled 
among  the  pioneers  of  Orange  County,  X.  Y. 
Thomas  Moffatt.  father  of  our  subject,  died  on  the 
same  farm  in  1828,  at  the  age  of  forty -five.  His 
wife  passed  away  in  Wheaton,  111..  April  29.  1879, 
in  her  ninety-first  year.  She  retained  her  mental 
faculties  up  to  the  time  of  her  death.  She  was  a 
daughter  of  An.selm  Helme.  and  a  sister  of  Judge 
Warren  Helme.  of  Oswego.  111. 

In  the  Moffatt  family  were  eight  children:  War- 
ren H..  decea.sed,  formerly  a  prominent  citizen 
of  Wayne,  111.:  Mary  Ann,  widow  of  S.  E.  Greg- 
or>-,  of  Elgin,  111. ;  Phoebe  E.,  wife  of  H.  V.  Sayer, 
who  died  in  Wayne.  111.,  in  1874:  William  L..  who 
died  soon  after  coming  to  this  county:  Sylvanus 
W. :  Catherine  M..  widow  of  Frank  Bardeen,  of 
Wheaton:  Anselm  D..  of  Clyde.  Kan.:  and  Ruth, 
who  became  the  wife  of  I).  Wheel<x:k.  The  latter 
and  her  husband  both  died  in  Moline,  111.  Of  the 
twenty-eight  grandchildren,  three  .ser\-ed  in  the 
Union  army,  and  one,  Thomas,  the  eldest  son  of 
Wairen  H.  Moffatt.  was  killed  at  the  battle  of 
Perr>ville.     The  family  was  also  represented  in 


the  Revolution  and  the  War  of  1812.  A  cousin 
of  our  subject's  father  ser\'ed  as  Major  of  Xew 
York  troops  in  the  latter  struggle. 

Mr.  Moffatt  whose  name  heads  this  record 
attended  a  select  school  in  Canterbury-,  X.  Y., 
and  also  received  private  classical  instruction.  At 
the  age  of  seventeen  he  liegan  teaching,  and  thus 
earned  the  money  to  pay  his  tuition  at  Canterbury. 
One  of  his  classmates  at  that  place  was  a  brother  of 
E.  P.  Roe,  the  noted  novelist.  Mr.  Moffatt  con- 
tinued to  teach  and  study  until  1840,  when  he 
came  to  Illinois.  He  engaged  in  teaching  in 
Aurora  and  Bartlett,  and  at  the  latter  place  held 
school  for  tliree  months  in  a  log  house,  with  a 
stick  chinmey  and  puncheon  floor.  He  received 
a  yoke  of  steers  valued  at  S.16  for  his  ser\ices. 

Retuniing  to  New  York,  Mr.  Moffatt  taught 
his  old  school  for  one  year,  and  was  then  married, 
April  10,  1845,  to  Harriet  E.  Sayer,  daughter  of 
William  and  Mary  ( Van  Duzer  j  Sayer.  She  was 
born  in  Cornwall,  Orange  County,  X.  Y.,  and  her 
family  came  originally  from  Holland.  Immediate- 
ly after  his  marriage,  our  subject  brought  his  bride 
to  DuPage  County,  purchased  a  tract  of  wild  land 
in  Wayne  Township,  built  a  log  cabin,  and  began 
life  in  true  pioneer  style.  The  home  was  blessed 
with  five  children:  William  S. ,  who  is  engaged 
in  business  in  Chicago,  but  resides  in  Wheaton; 
Mar>-  A.,  who  died  April  25.  1861:  Eben  C,  who 
died  May  30,  1861,  and  Ward  B.,  who  died 
April  iS,  1861,  all  of  diphtheria:  and  Harriet  E., 
wife  of  K.  Patrick,  of  Wheaton.  The  eldest  son 
was  a  musician  of  Company  A.  One  Hundred  and 
Forty-first  Illinois  Infantn,-,  during  the  late  war. 
He  is  an  enthusiastic  botanical  student. 

Mr.  Moffatt's  first  wife  died  in  Wheaton,  April 
20,  1879,  and  he  was  married  July  26,  1880  to 
Mrs.  Kittie  Marriott,  widow  of  William  Marriott, 
and  a  daughter  of  Roliert  and  Sarah  Dodsley. 
She  was  bom  in  Xew  Haven,  Sussex,  England. 
Her  father,  who  died  when  she  was  three  years 
old,  was  a  physician,  and  was  a  descendant  of  the 
same  family  as  Robert  Dodsley,  the  noted  poet  of 
the  eighteenth  centur>-.  Her  mother  was  a  daugh- 
ter of  John  Gresham.  a  descendant  of  Sir  Thomas 
Gresham.  founder  of  the  Royal  Exchange  of 
London.      Mr.  and  Mrs.    Marriott  had  nine  chil- 


348 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


dren,  of  whom  three  died  in  childhood:  Sarah  K. 
is  the  wife  of  F.  J.  Gar\-,  of  Westside,  Iowa  (see 
biography  of  Jude  P.  Gary ) :  Louisa  C.  is  the  wife 
of  J.  R.  Francis,  of  Chicago:  Marj-  E.  is  the  wife 
of  W.  S.  Moffatt;  Abram  R.  lives  in  Austin,  111.: 
Alex  D.  resides  in  Omaha.  Neb:  and  Frank  in 
Westside,  Iowa.  Mr.  Marriott  was  bom  in  South- 
well, Nottinghamshire,  England,  and  came  to 
Wheaton  in  1856.  He  died  December  24,  1866. 
at  the  age  of  forty-one. 

Mr.  Moffatt  continued  to  operate  his  farm  until 
1863,  when  he  removed  to  Elgin,  but  after  a  year  | 
returned  to  the  farm.  In  1865,  however,  he  sold 
it  and  came  to  Wheaton,  where  he  Ii\-es  practi- 
cally retired,  but  occupies  his  leisure  time  with  the 
cultivation  of  a  fine  vineyard  and. shrubben,-.  He 
and  his  wife  are  members  of  the  Congregational 
Church.  In  early  life  he  was  a  Whig,  and  cast 
his  first  Presidential  vote  for  William  Henry 
Harrison.  Since  the  organization  of  the  Repub-  . 
lican  party,  he  has  been  one  of  its  stalwart  sup- 
porters. He  has  served  as  a  member  of  the  Town 
Council,  was  on  the  School  Board  for  nine  years, 
was  President  of  the  Town  Council  of  Wheaton 
for  four  years,  was  Assessor,  and  ser\ed  as  Town 
Clerk  and  Supervisor  of  Wayne  Township.  He 
has  always  been  a  strong  advocate  of  temperance, 
and  is  enjoying  excellent  health  for  a  man  of  his 
age.  He  never  employed  a  physician  for  him- 
self until  six  years  ago.  An  honorable,  upright 
life  has  won  for  him  the  highest  regard,  and  he  is 
one  of  the  respected  and  valued  citizens  of  Whea- 
ton. 


C 


]^^[ 


GlLMERON  DEVILLO  OYER,  Assistant 
Ll  Freight  Auditor  of  the  Chicago  &  North- 
1  I  western  Railway  at  Chicago,  has  been  a 
resident  of  Wheaton  since  October,  1887.  He 
was  born  in  Little  Valley,  Cattaraugus  County, 
N.  Y.,  July  25,  1853,  and  is  the  .second  child  of 
Reuben  F.  and  Dorleska  Oyer,  of  New  York 
birth  and  Dutch  de.scent. 

In  1856  the  former  came  West  to  Randolph 
Center,  Dodge  Countj-,  W"is. ,  removing  four  years 
later  to  Sparta,  in  the  same  State.     In    1865  he 


went  to  Winona.  Minn.,  where  he  has  ever  since 
resided,  having  retired  about  a  year  ago  from 
active  labor.  All  his  living  children,  except  the 
subject  of  this  biograjihy,  reside  in  Winona.  Fol- 
lowing are  the  names  of  them  all,  in  order  of 
birth:  William  F..  Almeron  D.,  F'lorence  (who 
died  at  the  age  of  five  years) ,  \'iola  (Mrs.  Charles 
Walrath),  Isabel,  Francis  M.  and  Delphine. 

A.  D.  Oyer  attended  the  public  schools  of 
Winona  until  1S75,  and  then  engaged  in  teaching 
in  the  schools  of  Winona  County.  For  a  time  he 
was  employed  as  clerk  in  a  store  at  Elba,  in  the 
same  county,  and  in  May,  1878,  he  took  a  posi- 
tion as  baggageman  and  check  clerk  in  the  Chi- 
cago &  Northwestern  Railway  station  at  Owa- 
tonna,  Minn.,  and  a  year  later  was  promoted  to  be 
clerk  and  cashier.  In  September,  1881.  he  went 
to  Chicago  as  clerk  in  the  local  freight  office  of 
the  same  railway  line.  In  April,  1882,  he  left 
this  position  to  accept  a  similar  one  in  the  supply 
department  of  the  American  Express  Company. 
He  returned  to  the  ser\-ice  of  the  Chicago  & 
Northwestern  Railway  August  15.  1882,  when  he 
took  the  po.sition  of  ca.shier  in  the  .station  at  Clin- 
ton, Iowa.  After  a  year's  employment  there,  he 
went  on  the  road  as  Traveling  Auditor,  and  con- 
tinued in  that  capacity  until  he  had,  in  succession, 
covered  the  entire  Northwestern  System,  except 
the  Madison  and  Northern  Galena  Divisions.  He 
began  his  pre.sent  duties  on  the  isl  of  June,  1888. 
His  rapid  promotions  indicate — to  the  exclu.sion 
of  any  necessity  for  comment — his  faithfulness  and 
adaptability  for  railroad  work.  His  career  should 
serve  as  an  encouraging  example  to  the  ambitious 
youth,  who  must  learn,  first  of  all,  to  do  what  is 
set  before  him  to  the  best  of  his  ability,  if  he 
would  rise  in  the  world. 

In  the  spring  of  1S92  Mr.  Oyer  purchased  his 
present  home  at  the  northwest  corner  of  West  and 
Maple  Streets,  and  may  be  reckoned  as  a  perma- 
nent resident  of  Wheaton.  He  is  a  member  of 
the  Masonic  order,  an  intelligent  obser\-er  of  pub- 
lic progress,  a  Republican,  and  entertains  liberal 
theological  views. 

In  December.  1S85,  Mr.  Oyer  was  married  to 
Miss  Alice  ^L  Jones,  who  was  boni  in  Milford, 
Jefferson  County.  Wis.,  and  died  at  Wheaton  in 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


35' 


Februan-.  1892.  aged  nearly  thirty-eight  years. 
Her  flither,  Hezekiali  Clark  Jones,  was  born  in 
Canada,  and  was  a  son  of  Thomas  Jones,  of  an 
old  New  England  family,  doubtless  of  Welsh  de- 
scent. The  maiden  name  of  Thomas  Jones'  wife 
was  Clark.  Susan  A.  Jones,  mother  of  Mrs. 
Oyer,  was  bom  in  Herkimer  County,  N.  V.,  and 
is  a  daughter  of  James  and  Catharine  (Tibbetsi 
Fa\-ille,  the  former  a  member  of  the  large  family  of 
John  Faville.  who  settled  in  Herkimer  County 
very  earl>-  in  the  development  of  that  region. 
John  Faville  was  of  English  birth,  and  his  wife 
Nancy  was  a  native  of  the  I.sle  of  Jer.sey.  The 
family  has  numerous  prominent  representatives  in 
Wisconsin.  A  daughter,  named  Edna  Alice,  com- 
pletes the  family  of  Mr.  Oyer. 


_=3 


^>^ 


S} 


[I, LARD  SCOTT.  Sk..  deceased,  who  for 
many  years  was  connected  with  the  leading 
business  interests  of  Xaper\-ille,  and  for 
half  a  centur>-  made  his  home  in  this  section  of 
the  great  commonwealth  of  Illinois,  was  a  native 
of  New  York,  boni  in  Unadilla,  Otsego  County, 
April  20,  1808.  His  parents  were  Stephen  J.  and 
Hadassah  (Trask)  Scott.  The  father  followed 
the  sea  in  his  early  years  and  became  the  owner 
and  master  of  a  schooner,  which  bore  his  name 
and  was  engaged  in  the  coast  trade  along  the  At- 
lantic shore.  In  Connecticut  he  wedded  Miss 
Trask,  who  was  a  relative  of  Gen.  Israel  Putnam, 
one  of  the  heroes  of  Revolutionar>-  fame.  On 
leaving  Hartford,  Conn.,  they  went  to  Unadilla, 
and  the  year  18 16  witnessed  their  removal  to 
Mar>land,  where  they  .spent  the  next  decade. 

During  this  time  our  subject  was  acquiring  an 
education  in  the  common  .schools,  and  al.so  took  a 
short  course  in  mathematics.  It  was  his  desire 
to  become  a  sailor,  but  his  mother  urged  him  not 
to  do  this,  for  the  life  was  too  fraught  with  dan- 
gers. In  1825,  the  family  made  a  visit  to  New 
York,  and  then  started  for  St.  Joseph.  Mich.,  go- 
ing through  Canada  to  Detroit,  and  thence  by 
water.  The  goods  were  shipped  by  sailing-vessel 
to  Detroit,  and  thence  Willard  too'k  them  to  their 


destination.  He  went  to  Detroit  with  a  man 
from  Ohio,  and  the  journey  thither  was  a  perilous 
one  through  the  unbroken  forest,  there  being  no 
road  except  the  Indian  trails.  They  reached  De- 
troit ten  days  before  the  arrival  of  their  goods, 
during  which  time  they  lived  on  corn  and  pota- 
toes. The  family  were  not  pleased  with  their 
home  in  Michigan,  and.  cr<)s.sing  the  Lake,  Uxrated 
in  Evan.ston. 

On  the  i6th  of  Jul\ .  iS2y,  Willard  Scott  wed- 
ded Caroline  Hawley,  in  Holdemian's  Grove.  In 
18 1 8,  her  father.  Pierce  Hawley,  went  from  Ver- 
mont to  Vincennes.  Ind, ,  and  afterwards  came  to 
Illinois,  locating  in  Holdemian's  Grove  in  1825. 
In  the  fall  of  1830,  he  and  his  family,  accompa- 
nied by  Mr.  Scott  and  his  family,  located  three 
miles  .south  of  Napen-ille,  in  what  is  now  DuPage 
County,  but  was  then  a  part  of  Cook  County. 
Cook  County  at  that  time  al.so  comprised  Lake, 
McHenry  and  Will  Counties,  There  were  thirty- 
two  votes  polled  in  Chicago  that  year,  Mr.  Scott's 
father  depositing  the  first  one.  During  the  War 
of  1S32,  our  subject  proved  a  valued  citizen  in 
the  settlement.on  account  of  his  knowledge  of  the 
Indians  and  their  methods  of  warfare. 

In  1838,  Mr.  Scott  became  a  resident  of  Naper- 
ville,  built  the  Napen-ille  Hotel,  and  conducted  it 
for  eighteen  years,  after  which  he  carried  on  mer- 
chandising for  twenty  years,  most  of  the  time  be- 
ing as.sociated  with  his  son  Thaddeus.  The  firm 
of  Willard  Scott  &  Co.  controlled  the  leading  bus- 
iness in  this  place,  and  operations  are  still  carried 
on  under  that  name,  Willard  Scott.  Jr.,  succeed- 
ing his  father  and  brother  Thaddeus  in  the  busi- 
ness. Retiring  from  merchandising  after  the 
Civil  War,  Mr.  Scott  was  President  of  the  Du- 
Page County  Bank,  subsequently  of  the  Bank 
of  Naper\-ille,  and  was  a  private  banker  until  his 
death.  September  13,  1S92.  He  possessed  bu.si- 
ness  ability  of  a  high  order,  was  sagacious  and  far- 
sighted,  and  his  enterpri.se  was  tempered  by  a 
commendable  conser\atism.  He  won  success,  and 
his  prosperity  was  the  reward  of  his  own  lal)ors. 

In  political  belief  our  subject  was  a  Democrat 
and  his  first  vote  was  cast  for  Andrew  Jack- 
son in  182S.  He  was  a  resident  of  Naperville  for 
more  than  half  a  centun-,  and  was  ivir  found   in 


352 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


the  front  rank  of  those  enterprises  calculated  to 
advance  the  best  interests  of  the  community. 
Throughout  DuPage  and  Cook  Counties  he  was 
widely  known,  and  was  held  in  the  highest  re- 
gard by  young  and  old,  rich  and  poor.  The 
name  of  W'illard  Scott  is  inseparably  connected 
with  the  histor>-  of  this  community,  and  the  rec- 
ord of  the  county  would  be  incomplete  without 
his  sketch. 


©_ 


1=^ 


^■i^ 


[S- 


'[S" 


lALTKR  BLANCHARD  was  born  March 
31,  1807,  at  Xew  Hampton.  Grafton  Coun 
ty.  X.  H.  The  name  Blanchard  signifies 
"White  Deer."  Its  origin  is  unknown.  Mr. 
Blanchard' s  father  was  named  Ahimaaz.  He 
was  of  Scotch-Wel.sh  descent,  his  Welsh  ances- 
tors being  the  descendants  of  a  Norman  family. 
He  was  born  April  26,  1767,  at  Billerica,  Mass., 
and  he  lived  there  until  he  went  to  Grafton 
County,  N.  H.,  to  be  married.  He  graduated  at 
Harvard  College,  and  afterward  in  medicine  and 
surgery  at  Radding,  Ma.ss.  In  1809  he  left  New 
Hampshire  and  went  to  Moriah,  Essex  County, 
N.  V.  Later  he  lived  in  Washington  County, 
N.  Y.  He  practiced  medicine  at  all  these  places. 
At  the  time  of  his  death  his  home  was  about  five 
miles  from  Plattsburg.  N.  V. 

The  father  of  Ahimaaz  was  Samuel  Blanchard, 
of  Billerica,  Mass.  He  was  born  August  17, 
1717,  and  died  March  26,  1807.  His  wife  was 
Mary  Brown,  a  daughter  of  William  Brown. 
They  were  married  July  14,  1747,  and  had  six 
sons:  William,  Samuel,  Timothy,  Jeremiah,  Ahi- 
maaz and  Jonathan;  and  four  daughters:  Mary, 
Sarah,  Martha  and  Rhoda.  The  three  elder  sons, 
Samuel,  Timothy  and  Jeremiah,  served  as  minute- 
men  in  the  fight  at  Lexington,  where  the  first 
blood  was  .shed  in  the  Revolutionary  War.  and 
Timothy  was  wounded. 

Samuel  Blanchard' s  father  was  John  Blanch- 
ard, who  was  born  July  3,  1677,  and  died  April 
10,  1750.  He  married  Mary  Crosley,  a  daugh- 
,ter  of  Simon  Crosley,  August  7,  1701.  His 
father  was  Samuel  Blanchard,  of  Andover,  Mass. , 
whose    father,     Thomas,     came    to    Charleston, 


Mass.,  in  1639.  Thomas  was  a  Scotch  Presbyte- 
rian, who  had  Hved  in  Wales  and  Ireland,  and 
who  came  from  the  latter  country  to  Massachu- 
setts. 

Ahimaaz  was  not  old  enough  to  go  into  the 
War  of  the  Revolution,  but  he  ser\-ed  in  the  War 
of  18 1 2,  as  a  soldier  in  the  army  guarding  the 
border  between  New  York  and  Canada.  He  died 
September  12.  1S14,  the  day  after  the  battle  of 
Plattsl)urg,  mourning  the  hard  fate  that  had 
kept  him  from  the  fight  that  he  could  hear  in  the 
distance,  he  being  then  in  the  last  .stage  of  con- 
sumption. 

Ahimaaz  Blanchard's  wife  was  Mary  Tolford. 
She  was  of  Scotch-Irish  descent,  her  family  hav- 
ing moved  from  Inverness,  Scotland,  to  London- 
derry, Ireland,   and  thence  to  New    Hampshire, 
about   1732.      Mary  Tolford's  father  was  Joshua 
Tolford,  whose  mother  was  Lady  Kate  McCurd\-, 
the  daughter  of  a  nobleman.    His  wife  was  Eliza- 
beth Smith.     Elizabeth's  family  name  was  really 
MacGregor.      It    will    be    rememliered    that  the 
Scotch  clan  MacGregor  was,  late  in  the  sixteenth 
centur>-,  unjustly  deprived  of  nuich  of  its  lands 
through  the  machinations  of  the  Earls  of  Argyle 
and  Breadalbane,  and  as  a  consequence  of  vigor- 
ously resisting  these  wrongs  bj-   force,  the  Mac- 
Gregors  were  outlawed  for  man\-  years.     Among 
the  rights  that  were  taken  away  from  them  was 
that   of  using    their  clan  name,    "MacGregor." 
Their  di.sabilities  were,  however,  removed  early 
in  the  seventeenth  century.     Sir  Walter  Scott  is 
authority   for   the    following    statement:      "The 
sept  (clan)  of  MacGregor  claimed  a  descent  from 
Gregor,    or  Gregorious,  third  son,   it  is  said,  of 
Alpin,  King  of  Scots,  who  flourished  about  787. 
Hence  their  original    patronymic    is    MacAlpin, 
and  they  are  usually    termed   the  Clan    Alpine. 
An    individual    tribe    of  them   retains   the  same 
name.     They    are    accounted    one    of    the    most 
ancient  clans  in  the  Highlands,  and   it   is  certain 
they  were  a  people  of  original  Celtic  descent,  and 
occupied  at  one  period  very  exten.sive  possessions 
in  Perthshire  and   Argyleshire,    which  they  im- 
prudently continued   to  hold  by  the  co/'r  a  glave, 
that  is.  "the  right  of  the  sword."    (See  introduc- 
tion to  "  Rob  Roy."  j 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


"o3 


Elizabeth  Smithi  MacGregors  mother  was 
Lady  Jane  McMurphy.  and  her  mother  was  the 
only  child  of  a  Scotch  earl,  the  title  going  to  a 
male  heir  in  another  branch  of  the  faniil>  . 

Joshua  Tolfords  father  was  also  Joshua  Tol- 
ford.     Both  were  surveyors,  and  later  judges. 

Ahiraaaz  Blanchard  and  Mar\-  Tolford  were 
married  April  27.  1797.  Their  children  were: 
Joshua  T..  bom  Jamiar>-  8.  1799:  Elizabeth.  De- 
cember 26.  1800;  Jonathan.  May  26.  1805:  Wal- 
ter. March  51.  r8o7:  Jane.  Augu.st  4.  1S09:  and 
Martha.  Januar>-  21.  1813. 

Walter  Blanchard  married  Mariam  Daniels,  at 
Yates.  N.  Y..  October  11,  1S34.  Mariam  (Dan- 
iels) Blanchard  died  June  17.  1836.  leaving  an 
infant  daughter.  Mar>-.  who  was  born  May  20. 
1836.  Mariam  Daniels  was  a  descendant  of  Sam- 
uel and  Sarah  Daniels,  who  resided  at  Alexan- 
dria. N.  H..  during  the  latter  part  of  the  eigh- 
teenth centun,-  and  the  early  part  of  the  nineteenth 
century.  Mr.  Daniels  was  one  of  three  brothers. 
Englishmen,  who  located  respectivelx  in  New 
Hampshire.  Mas-sachusetts  or  Connecticut  and 
Virginia.  He  was  a  farmer  and  merchant.  From 
New  Hampshire  he  and  his  family  went  to  \er- 
shire.  Vt..  where  he  died  in  November.  1810. 
His  children  were;  Samuel,  Seth.  James.  Gad. 
and  Grosvenor,  and  two  daughters.  Seth.  the 
second  son.  married  Haiuiah  Martin.  Her  father 
was  a  Protestant- Irishman,  and  by  trade  a  black- 
smith. Her  mother  was  Jennie  McDonald,  a 
Simon-Pure  Scotch-Presbyterian.  Their  children 
were  Sally.  Jane.  Polly.  Anna,  Mariam.  Hibbard 
S..  Hamilton  C,  Julia  M..  Seth  P.  and  Han- 
nah E. 

Mr.  Blanchard  was  a  second  time  married,  on 
November  i.  1837.  this  time  to  Alvira  Norris. 
The  children  of  this  union  were:  Franklin, 
bom  November  7.  1838;  William,  April  27,  1S42: 
Elizabeth.  September  29.  1848  :  and  Nancy  Dick- 
erman.  Octolier  22,  1851,  all  bom  at  Downers 
Grove.  DuPage  Count>-.  111. 

Man-  Blanchard.  daughter  of  the  first  marriage, 
married  Charles  Carpenter,  May  22,  1863.  See 
his  biography  for  her  further  succession. 

Franklin  Blanchard  married  JuUna  Clifford, 
April  17.  1865.     (See  his  biography.  ' 


William  Blanchard  married  Eveline  Staiulish. 
and  they  have  the  following  children  :  Harrj-; 
Hettie.  who  is  married  to  Richard  Barweiss:  El- 
bert: Eugenie  and  Melita.  They  are  all  in  Chi- 
cago. 

Elizabeth  Blanchard  married  Benjamin  Ash- 
ley. November  10.  1864.  They  moved  soon  to 
Missouri,  and  Mrs.  Ashley  died  August  2t.  1878, 
leaving  three  children,  Eddie.  Alice  and  Frank. 

Nancy  Dickeraian  Blanchard  married  Jake  E. 
DeArmond.  of  Fairfax.  Mo..  October  6,  1872, 
and  has  three  children.  Blanche.  Charlie  and 
Roscoe.     They  are  still  living  at  Fairfax. 

As  Ahimaaz  Blanchard  died  in  18 14.  it  will  be 
seen  that  there  was  left  a  mother  with  her  three 
boys  and  three  .girls,  the  eldest  child  a  boy  of  fif- 
teen years,  and  the  youngest  an  infant.  Walter 
was  but  seven  years  old.  It  is  evident  that  as  soon 
as  they  were  old  enough,  the  children  were  set  to 
work  to  help  take  care  of  themselves.  Mr. 
Blanchard  often  said  later  in  life  that  he  and  his 
sister  Martha  got  their  education  in  a  '  cotton- 
mill."  At  one  time  the  foreman  of  the  mill  in 
which  the  children  were  working  punished  Mar- 
tha somewhat  severely  for  a  small  offence.  Wal- 
ter heard  of  it.  and  a  few  minutes  later,  while  he 
was  going  down  stairs  with  his  arms  full  of 
spindles,  he  met  the  foreman.  Without  hesitat- 
ing an  instant,  he  opened  fire  on  the  man  with 
the  spindles,  much  to  the  foreman's  discomfiture. 
After  having  thus  gotten  even.  Walter  and  his 
.sister  left  the  mill  together. 

Mr.  Blanchard  came  to  DuPage  County  in 
1836.  Early  in  1837  he  bought  a  fami.  A  por- 
tion of  the  land  thus  purchased  is  within  the 
present  southern  limits  of  the  village.  The  log 
house  that  the  Blanchards  first  occupied  has  dis- 
appeared, but  the  original  frame  house,  which 
was  built  alxjut  1 S40.  still  stands. 

In  November.  1837.  Mr.  Blanchard  retumed 
to  New  York  State,  and  in  a  few  weeks  came 
back  with  his  wife  and  his  little  girl.  Mar> .  the 
daughter  of  himself  and  Mariam  (  Daniels  i  Blanch- 
ard. 

During  the  years  from  1836  to  1861  Mr. 
Blanchard  was  one  of  the  foremost  citizens  of  the 
county.     He  gradually  worked  into  the  practice 


354 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


of  law.  his  office  being  at  Napenille,  and  for 
seven  years  prior  to  the  opening  of  the  Rebellion 
he  was  Couut\-  Judge.  This  position  he  resigned 
to  enter  the  Union  army.  He  was  a  Whig,  and 
then  a  Republican,  and  in  the  campaign  of  i860, 
in  which  he  took  an  active  part,  he  was  President 
of  the  "Downer's  Grove  Plow  Boys, '  a  Republican 
Marching  Club,  which  distinguished  itself  all 
over  the  count>-.  His  son,  Franklin  Blanchard, 
has  a  gold-headed  ebony  cane  that  tliis  club 
presented  to  their  President,  Judge  Blanchard,  in 
1859. 

That  the  Judge  was  a  man  who  had  a  strong 
and  good  influence  on  the  community  is  shown 
by  his  elevation  to  honors  b\-  the  \otes  of  his 
neighbors,  and  by  his  prompt  election  to  the 
Captaincy  of  the  first  company  of  .soldiers  raised 
in  his  neighborhood.  That  he  connnanded  tlie 
respect  and  friendship  of  young  men  is  .shown 
perhaps  as  well  as  in  any  way  by  the  following  let- 
ter, written  by  Judge  H.  W.  Blodgett.  of  the 
District  Court  of  the  United  States,  March  27, 
1887,  to  Judge  Blanchard's  elde.st  daughter, 
Mani  Carpenter: 

"De.vr  M.\rv  : — I  received  about  a  week  ago  a 
photograph  of  your  loved  and  honored  father. 
Words  can  not  express  how  glad  I  am  to  have 
this  memento  of  the  man  who  was  the  true  and 
kind  friend  of  my  boyhood  and  m\-  later  life.  I 
am  plea.sed,  too,  that  it  shows  him  in  his  sol- 
dier's uniform — that  in  which  he  fought  and  died 
for  the  countr\-  and  Union  he  loved  so  well.  It 
is  a  perfect  picture  of  him  as  I  la,st  saw  him  in 
front  of  Vickshurg. 

"The  older  I  get  and  the  more  I  see  of  men,  the 
more  I  appreciate  aiid  grow  grateful  for  the  priv- 
ilege in  my  early  life  of  being  brought  in  contact 
with  two  such  rare  men  as  your  father  and  >our 
Uncle  Henr\-  Carpenter.  I  feel  that  thej-  had 
much  to  do  in  shaping  my  course  in  life,  and 
shall  ever  cherish  their  memories  with  sincere 
affection. 

"Accept,  then,  my  heartfelt  thanks  for  your 
thoughtful  kindness — my  assurances  of  esteem 
for  yourself  as  the  most  worthy  daughter  of  so 
good  a  father. 

Judge  Blanchard  was  a  strong  Republican. 
He  and  his  daughter  Mary  were  at  the  Wigrvam 
in  Chicago  when  Lincoln  was  nominated  in 
1859,  and  the  Judge  helped  as  he  was  able  in  the 


following  election.  He  had  a  personal  acquaint- 
ance with  Abraham  Lincoln,  and  knew  nearly  all 
the  prominent  Illinois  Republican  politicians. 
One  of  the  Abolition  'underground  railroad"  sta- 
tions was  at  Downer's  Grove,  and  the  Judge  was 
an  active  agent  in  the  work  of  ruiniing  off  the 
negroes. 

The  news  of  the  firing  on  Sumter  was  slow 
in  reaching  Downer's  Grove.  The  Judge  was, 
as  all  were,  greatly  excited  by  the  news.  His 
dian,  of  Sunday.  April  21,  1861,  .says  : 

"Bulletin  announcing  the  taking  of  Cairo  by 
an  anned  mob  from  Kentucky.  News  bad,  but 
we  must,  and  every  American  citizen  ought,  and 
I  will,  stand  by  our  glorious  old  Goverinnent,  re- 
lying upon  God  for  strength." 

Within  the  next  few  da\s  he  attended  four 
war  meetings  at  different  towns,  with  a  \-iew 
to  getting  recruits  for  the  army,  making  speeches 
at  each  one,  and  it  is  on  record  that  at  one  meet- 
ing at  Danby  he  got  twelve  men  to  enlist,  and 
that  at  another  meeting,  at  Downer's  Grove, 
thirteen  enrolled  themselves. 

Evidently  the  Judge  did  not  believe  in  the 
doctrine  of  letting  his  wife's  relations  do  the 
fighting,  for.  although  over  fifty-four  years  old, 
he  enlisted  himself,  and  took  his  two  sons  with 
him  into  the-service.  His  company  immediately 
went  to  Camp  Dement,  at  Dixon,  where  it  was 
mustered  in  for  three  years  on  Maj-  24,  1861. 

The  history  of  Capt.  Blanchard  from  the  time 
he  enlisted  to  the  day  of  his  death  is  a  highly 
honorable  part  of  the  history-  of  the  Thirteenth 
Regiment  of  Illinois  Infantry,  who.se  record  is  of 
the  best,  covering,  besides  countless  small  fights, 
participation  in  the  battle  of  Chickasaw  Bayou, 
the  capture  of  Vicksburg  and  Jack.son,  and  the 
battles  of  Lookout  Mountain.  Missionary  Ridge 
and  Ringgold  Gap.  Somewhat  advanced  in  age, 
he  at  all  times  bore  more  than  his  .share  of  hard- 
ships. The  following  item  from  the  Chicago 
Evening  Journal  perhaps  throws  a  strong  light 
on  his  character  as  a  .soldier.  It  is  in  a  report  of 
the  first  attack  on  \'icksburg. 

■'  In  addition  to  the  above,  it  seemed  as  if  al- 
most every  man  in  the  regiment  was  scratched  or 
slightlv  wounded,  and  manv  of  these  would  make 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


355 


more  ado  about  a  mere  scratch  on  the  finger  or  j 
t'>e  than  those  who  suffered  amputation.  Capt. 
Walter  Blanchard  has  a  bullet  in  the  vicinity  of 
his  groin,  and  a  wound  in  the  upper  part  of  his 
body,  but  pa.s.sed  the  night  after  the  battle  among 
his  men.  exposed  to  a  drenching  rain:  and  the 
next  moniing  I  .saw  him  standing  in  the  wind 
eating  a  hard  cracker,  and  almo.st  shedding  tears 
because  his  men  were  in  so  uncomfortable  a  con- 
dition after  fighting  as  tliey  had  done  the  day 
l:)efore.  Such  things  make  men  love  their  com- 
manders, and  no  danger  is  too  great  to  undertake 
with  such  leaders. ' ' 

Capt.  Blanchard  served  continuously  with  his 
regiment  from  the  da>  it  was  mustered  in  to  his 
death.  On  one  occasion  he  was  fiirloughed  on 
account  of  sickness,  and  started  toward  home. 
He  stop{>ed  a  few  days  at  a  town  not  far  from 
where  his  regiment  was.  and.  feeling  consider- 
ably better,  refii.sed  to  take  advantage  of  the  fur- 
lough, and  returned  to  his  regiment. 

During  the  battle  of  Ringgold  Gap.  November 
27,  1863.  having  charged  into  one  of  the  hottest 
places  a  bunch  of  soldiers  ever  got  into,  he  and 
his  men  were  in  the  advance,  shooting  from 
cover.  His  superior  officers  had  been  wounded 
or  killed,  and  Capt.  Blanchard  was  in  conmiand 
of  the  regiment.  While  in  the  act  of  shooting  at 
the  rebels  with  a  gun  that  he  had  taken  from 
the  hands  of  a  fallen  comrade,  the  Captain's  knee 
was  badly  shattered  bv  a  grape-shot.  He  was 
urged  to  retire,  but.  although  unable  to  stand 
without  support,  he  in.sisted  on  ha\ing  guns 
loaded  for  him.  so  that  he  might  continue  to 
shoot.  After  the  battle  his  men  carried  the  Cap- 
tain about  twenty  miles  to  Chattanooga.  But 
on  December  4  he  tlied  there  from  the  effects  of 
the  wound  and  an  amputation. 

In   Gen.    Osterhaus"   report  of  this  fight,   the 

following  occurs  : 

"At  the  same  time  I  ordered  the  Thirteenth 
Illinois  Infantr>-  ( which  held  the  extreme  right  > 
to  advaiic-e  rapidly  over  an  ojxrn  field  to  a  few 
houses  in  front.  By  these  movements  I  concen- 
trated a  ainverging  fire  on  the  enemy's  artillery. 
which  I  hoped  to  secure  by  dri\-ing  off  the 
enemy's  cannoneers  and  supports.  The  Thir- 
teenth Illinois  Infantn-  executed  the  order  in 
magnificent  style.  They  charged  through  a 
hail-storm  of  bullets,  and  gained  the  position  as- 


signed to  them  and  held  it.  Although  the  reliels 
f)oured  a  most  nuirderous  fire  on  these  brave  men 
from  the  gorge  in  front  and  the  hill  on  the  right, 
the  Thirteenth  Rcginieit  remained  undaunted, 
keeping  up  a  vehement  fire. 

"  I  beg  leave  to  call  your  attention  to  the  very 
heavN'  percentage  of  los-ses  among  the  officers, 
and  I  can  not  pass  over  the  fact  without  expre.ss- 
ing  the  highest  praise  for  their  energy,  valor  and. 
in  fact.  ever>-  virtue  which  honors  a  good  soldier. 
To  name  those  who  behavetl  gallantly  is  the  next 
thing  to  an  impo.ssibility.  as  I  feel  under  obliga- 
tions to  ever>-  one.  officers  and  men.  They  were 
all  ready  to  do  their  duty,  and  they  did  it  nobly 
and  well  under  the  most  tr\ing  circumstances. 
I  take  pleasure,  however,  in  recapitulating  from 
the  reports  of  my  brigade  commanders  the  names 
they  mention:  The  heroic  Col.  Wengelin.  of  the 
Twelfth  Missouri  Regiment,  who  lost  his  right 
ann:  Lieut. -Col.  Partridge,  of  the  Thirteenth 
Illinois,  who  lost  part  of  his  left  hand :  the  la- 
mented Maj.  Bushnell.  of  the  Thirteenth  Illinois. 
who  sacrificed  his  life:  and  Capt.  Walter  Blanch- 
ard. of  the  Thirteenth  Illinois,  who  lost  his  leg. 
and  a  week  later  yielded  his  life.  Also  Capt. 
Beard.sley.  of  the  Thirteenth  Illinois,  who  was 
badly  wounded  in  the  arm.  " 

To  show  the  position  he  occupied  in  the  minds 
of  his  fellow-citizens  of  DuPage  County  and  his 
fellow -officers  of  the  Thirteenth  Regiment,  the 
following  extract  from  a  Naperville  '111.  >  news- 
paper, published  about  the  middle  of  December, 
1863.  is  given. 

■"HK  DIED  KOK  HIS  COINTKV.    " 

"The  melancholy  tidings  of  the  death  of  Capt. 
Blanchard  were  received  in  this  village  (shown 
to  be  Naperville  by  the  names,  etc.)  on  Friday, 
the  iith  inst.  A  meeting  of  the  citizens  was 
calletl  the  same  evening  at  the  office  of  Lewis 
Ellsworth.  Esq..  and.  having  a.ssembled.  the 
Rev.  C.  P.  Felch  was  calletl  to  the  chair,  and  C. 
M .  Castle  appointed  Secretary . 

'The  object  of  the  meeting  having  been  stated 
bv  M.  C.  Dudley.  Esq.,  to  be  to  make  suitable 
arrangements  for  receiving  the  remains  and  es- 
corting them  from  the  depot  to  Downer's  Grove, 
and  als  >  to  adopt  resolutions  expressive  of  re- 
spect for  the  decea.sed  and  .sympath>  with  his 
family. 

"dn  motion  of  Mr.  Ellsworth.  Me.<srs.  Wright 
and  Dudley  were  appointetl  to  go  to  Chicago  and 
meet  the  body,  and  attend  it  to  the  depot. 

"On    motion.    Messrs.    Cody.   Ellsworth    and 


356 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


Whitney    were  appointed   a    committee    to  draft 
and  report  suitable  resolutions,  and 

"On  motion  of  Mr.  Wright.  Maj.  L-  D.  Bishop, 
A.  C.  Yundt  and  Robert  Xaper  were  appointed  a 
committee  to  make  proper  arrangements  for  es- 
corting the  remains  from  the  depot  to  the  home 
of  the  deceased. 

'  'The  Committee  on  Resolutions  then  reported 
through  their  chairman  the  following  resolutions, 
which  were  unanimously  adopted  : 

"Whereas.  Capt.  Walter  Blanchard.  one  of  the 
oldest  and  most  respected  citizens  of  our  county,  has 
been  stricken  down  b},-  death  in  consequence  of 
wounds  received  in  the  late  battle  at  Ringgold 
Gap,  while  leading  his  company  with  a  bravery 
amounting  to  heroism:  and 

'■Whkke.\s,  We,  as  citizens,  de.sire  to  pay  a 
suitable  tribute  of  respect  to  his  memor\-,  and  by 
a  proper  manifestation  of  public  sympathy  as- 
.suage  in  some  degree,  if  possible,  the  grief  of  a 
mourning  family,  and  also  assure  the  remnant  of 
the  old  company  (the  Captain's  brave  compan- 
ions in  arms  1  of  our  affectionate  regard:  there- 
fore. 

"Resolved,  That  while  we  recognize  the  hand  of 
that  Providence  whose  ways  are  inscrutable  in 
this  afflictive  event,  we  deeply  mourn  the  loss  of 
Capt.  Blanchard.  to  whose  public  services  and 
private  worth  we  bear  most  willing  testimony. 
An  active  and  useful  citizen  from  the  early  his- 
tory of  our  county,  he  was  often  called  to  fill 
places  of  public  tru.st,  in  all  of  which  he  acquitted 
himself  to  the  entire  .sati.sfaction  of  his  fellow- 
citizens.  When  the  echoes  of  the  first  guns  fired 
in  this  unholy  rebellion  fell  upon  his  ears,  and  he 
realized  that  organized  treason  was  in  the  land, 
that  traitor  hands  had  outraged  the  glittering 
flag  under  which  he  had  been  protected  from  his 
infancy,  and  were  striving  to  destroy  the  best 
Government  on  earth,  and  trample  under  foot 
the  priceless  legacy  which  he  desired  to  transmit 
to  his  children,  his  clarion  voice  rang  out  like  a 
tnnnpet,  and,  as  if  by  magic,  a  gallant  band  of 
young  men  sprang  to  arms,  and  with  him  as  their 
leader  went  forth  to  strike  in  the  name  of  God 
and  Liberty  for  the  preser\-ation  of  the  Union. 
At  the  head  of  that  company,  and  in  advance  of 
all  his  men,  fighting  with  the  weapon  of  a 
wounded  comrade,  the  faithful  citizen,  true  pa- 
triot, and  fearless  soldier  fell. 

"In  all  the  relations  of  life  he  was  loved  and 
honored.  As  a  man,  his  courteous  manners,  reso- 
lute purpose,  sound  judgment  and  capacity  to 
gather  wisdom  from  experience,  won  the  respect 
and  esteem  of  his  associates.  As  a  friend,  his 
frankness,  his  ardent  attachments  and  his  high 
sense  of  honor  endeared  him   to  aU:   while  the 


kindly  influence  of  his  social  qualities  fell  ■with 
genial  warmth  within  whatever  circle  he  moved. 
As  a  husband,  he  was  kind  and  afi"ectionate:  as  a 
father,  fond  and  sympathetic,  treating  his  wife 
with  tenderness  and  respect,  and  his  children 
with  a  gentleness  and  love  that  will  embalm  his 
memory  in  their  hearts,  and  strengthen  the  cords 
of  their  attachment  to  him  forever.  While  as  a 
patriot . 

"he  died  for  his  COl'XTRY." 

"Resolved,  That  we  tender  to  the  family  of  the 
deceased  our  warmest  sympathies,  and  our  earnest 
prayer  for  them  shall  be  that  He  who  "doeth  all 
things  well"  and  "temperelh  the  wind  to  the 
.shorn  lamb"  may  ha\e  them  in  His  kind  care 
and  keeping  here,  and  prepare  them  to  meet  their 
husband  and  father  in  that  world  where  war's 
rude  alarms  are  never  heard,  and  where  .sorrow 
and  pain,  parting  and  tears  can  never  enter. 

''Resolved,  That  the  remnant  of  Company  K  are 
entitled  to  our  sympathy  in  this  hour  of  their 
sorrow;  the\-  are  called  to  mourn  the  loss  of  their 
leader,  who.se  manly  courage  and  exalted  patriot- 
i.sm.  blended  witli  a  fatherly  care  for  them,  bound 
their  hearts  to  him  as  with  "hooks  of  steel;" 
with  him  they  have  made  personal  sacrifices, 
stood  the  shock  of  battles,  and  borne  toils,  priva- 
tions and  hardships  until  reduced  to  about  one- 
third  of  their  original  numbers.  We  can  but  recog- 
nize in  each  man  a  hero  and  a  veteran,  and  may 
God  in  His  infinite  mercy  spare  their  lives,  and, 
returning  them  in  safety  .soon  to  their  homes,  per- 
mit them  long  to  enjoy  the  sweets  of  a  peace  they 
shall  have  done  so  much  to  procure. 

"Resolved,  That  a  printed  copy  of  the.se  resolu- 
tions be  forwarded  to  the  family  of  the  deceased, 
and  to  Company  K  of  the  Thirteenth  Regiment 
of  Illinois  Infantry. 

"The  meeting  then  adjourned. 

"C.  P.  Felch.  Chairman. 
"C.  M.  C.\stle.  Seeretarv." 


He.^dqiarters  I 

Thirteenth  Illinois  Infantry.  f 
Bridgeport.  Al.\.,  December  lo.  1863. 
"At  a  meeting  of  the  officers  of  this  regiment, 
convened  for  the  purpose  of  adopting  measures 
expressive  of  our  loss,  and  the  deep  sympathy 
we  feel  for  the  family  in  the  death  of  our  friend 
and  companion-in-arms,  Capt.  Walter  Blanchard, 
the  following  resolutions  were  submitted  and 
unanimously  adopted: 

"Whereas,  At  the  late  battle  of  Ringgold  Gap, 
November  27,  1863,  while  leading  his  company, 
Capt.  Walter  Blanchard  fell,  mortalh-  wounded 
by  missiles  of  the  foe.   we  thus  being  deprived  of 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


357 


the  companionship  and  senices  ol  that  \vorth\ 
associate,  venerable  patriot  and  brave  soldier, 
whose  age,  devotion  and  counsel  have  ever  in- 
spired us  with  loftiest  .sentiments  of  patriotism,  it 
behooves  us  to  make  some  acknowledgment  of  his 
services,  pay  a  just  tribute  to  his  worth,  and  ex- 
tend to  his  family  and  friends  the  sympathy  we 
feel  for  them  in  this  sad  dispen.sation  of  an  all- 
wise  Providence;  therefore, 

•  •  A'tsohrJ .  First.  That  while  we  admire  the  course 
of  the  venerable  Captain,  who.  at  the  advanced  age 
of  fifty-five  years,  sacrificed  the  comfort  of  home, 
and  braved  the  dangers  of  the  field  in  the  de- 
fen.se  of  his  Government,  the  blessings  of  whose 
re-established  swa\'  he  had  scarcelv  a  hope  to  en- 
joy, we  also  attest  our  hearty  appreciation  of  the 
unimjieachable  character  he  has  sustained,  the 
valuable  services  he  has  rendered,  and  the  bright 
example  he  has  left  for  our  emulation. 

"Second.  That  while  we  mourn  this  lo.ss.  one 
we  most  sensibly  feel,  we  extend  to  his  family 
and  friends  our  sincere  condolence  in  this  be- 
reavement, trusting  the  prospects  of  a  reunion 
may  encourage  their  hopes  and  cheer  them  in  the 
affliction  .so  keenly  felt  by  all  who  have  known 
him  only  to  love  and  revere  his  memory. 

•  Third.  That  a  copy  of  these  re.-«lntions  be  for- 
warded to  Mrs.  Al\-ira  Blanchard.  and  also  pre- 
sented for  publication  in  the  Chicago  Tribune, 
Chicago  Daily  Journal.  DuPaj^i-  County  Press 
and  the  Christian  Tinus.  as  an  assurance  to  his 
family  and  friends  that  his  ser\-ices  and  virtues 
are  appreciated  b\-  those  a.ssociated  with  him  in 
the  discharge  of  the  duties  he  so  nobly,  ably  and 
faithfully  performed. 

•Geo.  p.  Browx.  Capt.  Conidg  Rcgt. 
•J.  D.  Pierce.   /./.  Acting  Adj't." 

The  above  clipping  is  undoubtedly  cut  from 
the  DuPagf  County  Press. 

The  following,  written  b>  the  historian  of 
Company  K.  for  "The  History  of  the  Thirteenth 
Illinois  Infantrx  ."  will  be  of  interest: 

"Capt.  Blanchards  earlier  years  were  pa.ss<fd 
in  a  sharp  struggle  with  p.nerty,  and  with  only 
the  slightest  opportunity  for  education,  and  his 
whole  later  career  was  subject  to  that  disadvan- 
tage. That  he  overcame  this  almost  entire  want 
of  acquaintance  with  books  in  early  life  was  due 
to  his  energy  and  force  of  character.  He  was 
not  a  man  who  loved  work  for  its  own  sake,  or  a 
book- worm,  who  would  acquire  for  the  mere  love 
of  acquisition.  It  needed  the  spur  of  a  strong 
nature  to  bring  out  his  Ijest  efforts,  but  lit  found 
this  in  the  necessities  with  which  he  was  sur- 
rounded, in  the  ties  of  family,  and  in  the  various 


positions  of  trust  in  which  he  was  placed.  He 
never  treated  these  obligations  slightingly.  l)nt 
whatever  effort  was  necessary  to  accomjilish  a 
worthy  object  he  put  forth,  and  he  was  in  the 
connnunity  in  which  he  lived  one  of  its  most  hon- 
ored and  u.seful  citizens. 

"  He  was  an  early  settler  in  the  State,  and  had 
a  large  acquaintance  among  the  foremost  men  of 
that  time,  who  had  a  part  to  play  in  the  building 
up  of  the  connuonwealth .  many  of  whom  he 
knew  jxrrsonally.  The  influence  which  he  had 
was  often  of  use  to  the  people,  and  he  was  always 
ready  to  help  forward  the  liest  interests  of  the 
comnninity.  and  of  his  manv  friends,  in  every 
proper  manner. 

■ '  That  Capt.  Blanchard  was  beloved  by  his 
men  is  shown  b\-  one  cif  tho.se  incidents  which 
come  back  to  the  memory  of  his  comrades  as  one 
of  the  most  pathetic  in  the  histor>-  of  the  regi- 
ment. When  the  regiment  fell  back  from  Ring- 
gold Gap  to  Chattanooga,  a  distance  of  twenty- 
miles,  Capt.  Blanchard  had  lost  his  leg  and  was 
weak  from  the  loss  of  blood,  but  he  had  his  old, 
well-remembered  grit  and  steadiness,  and  the 
men  would  not  entru.st  him  to  the  tender  mercies 
of  the  ambulance,  but  on  a  litter  carried  him  on 
their  shoulders  the  whole  distance  from  the  hos- 
pital to  the  cit\  of  Chattanooga,  cheerfully  tak- 
ing turns,  and  \">ing  with  each  other  in  this  laV)or 
of  love. 

■  ■  And  so.  when  it  became  evident  that  he 
could  not  recover,  and  he  .saw  that  the  Grim  Mes- 
senger was  near,  he  turned  to  his  wounded  com- 
rade. Maj.  Beardsley.  and  dictated  his  will,  re- 
membering with  his  la.st  act  those  dearest  to  him 
in  life,  and  crowning  with  his  la.st  act  his  life's 
devotion  to  his  familv.  to  his  conntrv.  and  to  his 
God. 

"He  was  one  among  thousands  like  hnn,  in 
this,  for  the  country-  was  fiill  of  patriotic  devo- 
tion, but  he  was  ours,  and  we  honor  with  our 
love  and  tears  the  memory  of  one  of  our  bravest 
and  truest." 


!^^-^ 


|~KANKLIN  Jl'LIUS  HAGEMAN.  third  son 
|ft  of  Dr.  F.  C.  Hageman  (whose  biography 
I '^  will  be  found  elsewhere  in  this  book),  was 
born  in  the  town  of  Winfield,  DuPage  County, 
111.,  October  5,  1852.  He  attended  the  public 
schools  of  Wheaton  and  Milwaukee.  Wis.,  and 
Wheaton   College,     leaving    school    at    the    age 


358 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


of  twenty-one  years.  From  1873  to  1878,  he  was 
employed  in  painting  with  his  elder  brother. 
George  \V.  Hageman.  of  Wheaton.  He  then  en- 
gaged in  farming  on  the  land  forming  his  father's 
estate,  a  part  of  which  he  subsequently  purchased, 
and  continued  this  occupation  until  the  .spring  of 

1892,  when  he  sold  out  and  moved  to  Wheaton. 
In  May  of  that  year  he  purchased  the  liver\-  bus- 
iness of  Benjamin  Congleton,  and  has  conducted 
it  since.  He  purchased  the  entire  frontage  on 
the  east  side  of  West  Street,  between  Jefferson  and 
Madison  Avenues,  on  which  he  has  two  hand- 
some residences,  one  of  which  he  occupies  as  a 
home. 

Mr.  Hageman  is  an  energetic  business  man, 
and  bestows  some  attention  on  public  as  well  as 
private  affairs.  He  served  three  terms  as  Com- 
mi.ssioner  of  Highways  in  Winfield  Township, 
has  been  Deputy  Sheriff  since  the  fall  of  1S91, 
and  was  elected  Constable  of  Milton  Township  in 

1893.  He  is  Treasurer  of  the  Winfield  Horse- 
Owners'  Protective  Association,  is  a  meml>er  of 
the  Masonic  order,  the  Modern  Woodmen  of 
America  and'the  Knights  of  Pythias.  He  accepts 
the  religious  faith  of  Universalisni,  and  has  given 
his  allegiance  to  the  Democratic  party  since  he 
was  a  voter. 

In  1878,  Mr.  Hageman  was  married  to  Miss 
Emma  Batchelder,  a  native  of  Wheaton,  daugh- 
ter of  Nathaniel  C.  and  Hetty  Batchelder,  of  old 
New  York  and  Penn.sylvania  families.  Two  sons 
and  two  daughters  have  been  given  to  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Hageman,  namely:  George  F.,  Lucy  M.. 
Franklin  N.  and  Grace. 


=#^+^§=- 


30HN  NEWTON  NIND  was  born  in  Peck- 
ham,  Surrey.  England,  July  31,  1800,  and 
died  in  Glen  Ellyn,  111.,  August  12,  1887. 
His  was  a  well-spent  life,  and  he  was  one  of  the 
worthy  and  honored  residents  of  this  community. 
His  parents  were  Benjamin  and  Sarah  Mira 
(Gardiner)  Nind.  His  paternal  grandmother 
was  a  half-sister  of  Rev.  John  Newton,  the  noted  di- 
vine and  hymn -writer.     Several  members  of  the 


family  settled  near  Baltimore,  Md.,  at  an  early 
day.  The  father  of  our  subject  was  for  many 
vears  in  the  employ  of  the  Ea.st  India  Company. 
Tradition  says  this  family  was  founded  in  Eng- 
land V)y  a  Dane,  when  the  Danes  invaded  that 
countn,-.  The  record  shows  that  the  estate  of 
"Nindesfelle,"  or  Nindsfield.  was  held  in  1050, 
in  the  reign  of  Edward  the  Confes.sor,  the  last 
ruler  before  the  Norman  in\asion.  A  genealogj- 
of  this  line  was  prepared  b>-  George  Nind,  of 
West  Hill,  Wandsworth,  S.  W.,  England,  and 
may  be  found  in  the  public  records  there. 

The  gentleman  whose  name  heads  this  record 
was  educated  in  the.  common  schools,  and  at  the 
age  of  fifteen  began  ser\ing  an  apprenticeship  to 
a  hardware  merchant.  Later  he  carried  on  that 
business  at  Bi,shop's  Stortford,  England.  The 
year  iS-45  witnessed  his  emigration  to  America, 
in  companx  with  his  family.  Arriving  in  Chi- 
cago, he  came  to  DuPage  County,  and  selected  a 
farm  in  Bloomingdale  Township,  which  he  pur- 
chased from  the  Government.  Tfiis  he  improved 
and  cultivated  until  1867,  Later  he  bought  a 
farm  at  Stacy's  Corners,  and  in  1874  he  removed 
to  Prospect  Patk.  now  Glen  Ellyn,  where  he- 
built  a  comfortable  residence  and  spent  his  re- 
maining days. 

On  the  17th  of  Februar>-,  1824,  Mr.  Xind  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Eliza  Barrett, 
daughter  of  James  Barrett,  who  was  an  iron- 
founder.  The  lady  was  boni  in  Saffron  Walden, 
England .  By  their  marriage  the\-  became  the  par- 
ents of  five  children:  Mira,  who  died  in  infancy; 
Mrs.  Emma  Lloyd:  James  G.,  who  died  in 
Minneapolis.  Minn.,  May  7,  1885:  Frederick  N., 
.  who  died  September  4,  1865,  in  St.  Charles,  111.; 
and  Mrs.  Sarah  J.  Longer,  of  Harlan,  Iowa. 
The  mother  of  this  family  died  in  Glen  Ellyn, 
Februan-  18,  1881,  at  the  advanced  age  of  seventj'- 
eight. 

Both  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Nind  were  memlx;rs  of  the 
Congregational  Church,  and  took  an  active  inter- 
est in  its  work.  While  in  England,  he  was  con- 
nected with  the  Independent  Order  of  Rechabites. 
and  was  one  of  the  foremost  members  in  Bishop's 
Stortford.  He  was  a  deep  thinker  and  earnest 
student,  and  through  reading  and  obserx^ation  be- 


Ika   BkuW-n. 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


361 


came  a  most  highly -informed  man.  He  was  one 
of  the  honored  pioneers  of  the  county,  and  one  of 
it.-i  progres-sive  and  repre.sentative  citizens.  His 
many  excellencies  of  character  gained  for  him  a 
\vide  circle  of  friends,  and  his  death  was  deeply 
mourned.  His  daughter,  widow  of  John  Lloyd, 
now  occupies  the  old  home  in  Glen  Ellyn. 


"=] 


^-r^: 


^VRA  brown,  a  prominent  business  man  of 
I  Chicago  and  Wheaton,  residing  at  the  latter 
X  place,  was  boni  in  Perry sburg.  Wood  County, 
Ohio,  January  25,  1835.  His  grandfather,  Eph- 
raim  Brown,  was  a  soldier  in  the  War  of  18 12.  in 
which  struggle  he  lost  his  life.  The  wife  of  the 
last-named  reached  the  extraordinar>-  age  of  one 
hundred  and  four  years.  Their  son.  Ira  Brown, 
a  native  of  the  State  of  New  York,  settled  in 
northwestern  Ohio,  when  that  region  was  an  al- 
most unbroken  wilderness.  In  the  spring  of 
! 835  he  moved  from  the  present  site  of  Perr>s- 
burg  to  a  location  near  what  is  now  the  city  of 
Defiance.  Ohio.  Here  he  purchased  a  large  tract 
of  land  and  began  farming  on  an  extensive  scale. 
Taking  an  especial  interest  in  horses,  it  is  not 
surprising  that  he  should  come  to  be  among  the 
foremost  breeders  of  that  stock,  and  he  is  still 
knowni — at  the  age  of  ninety  years — as  one  of  the 
most  progressive  and  successful  farmers  of  the 
Buckeye  State.  Ju.st  before  going  to  Ohio,  he 
married  Miss  Harriet  Loughborough,  a  sister  of 
William  Loughborough,  a  noted  member  of  the 
Rochester  iN.  Y.  ■  Bar.  In  removing  from  Per- 
r>sburg  to  Defiance,  she  refused  to  trust  herself 
and  young  child,  the  subject  of  this  biography,  to 
the  chances  of  a  successful  navigation  of  the  Mau- 
mee  River  in  a  "dugout,"  and  the  infantile  Ira 
Brown  was  carried  Indian  fa.shion  on  her  back  all 
the  way,  thus  making  his  entrance  into  the  neigh- 
borhood in  which  he  grew  up.  and  which  he  only 
left  when  he  set  out  for  Chicago. 

In  1835,  what  was  known  as  Ft.  Defiance  occu- 
pied the  site,  or  at  least  a  portion  of  the  site,  of  the 
present  city  of  the  same  name.  Thecou!itr\  sirr- 
rouniiing  it  was  an  unbroken  forest,  in  which  the 


howling  of  wild  animals  was  a  familiar  sound,  and 
in  which  Indian  hunters  were  far  more  numerous 
than  white  ones.  It  was  in  the  wildest  and  new- 
est portion  of  a  comparatively  new  State,  and  the 
experiences  of  boys  who  grew  up  in  that  region 
within  the  next  few  years  were  such  as  to  fit  them 
for  pioneer  life  in  almost  any  western  conniuinity. 
The  experiences  of  Ira  Brown  were  not  different 
from  those  of  the  average  country  youth  f>f  that 
period  in  northwestern  Ohio.  During  the  summer 
and  winter  months  of  each  year  he  attended  school 
at  Defiance  until  he  was  old  enough  to  make  him- 
self useful  on  the  farm.  Dividing  histime  between 
fann  labor  and  the  schoolroom,  he  remained  at 
home  until  he  was  se\'enteen  years  of  age,  when 
he  reached  the  conclusion  that  fanning  was  not 
altogether  to  his  taste,  and  he  was  anxious  to  see 
something  more  of  the  world  before  deciding  on  a 
permanent  occupation.  As  he  was  still  a  mere 
>outh,  his  idea  of  getting  away  from  home  did 
not  receive  the  endorsement  of  his  parents,  and 
the  differences  of  opinion  between  them  were  so 
radical  that  the  young  man  finally  concluded  to 
settle  the  matter  for  him.self  Accordingly,  when 
a  fortunate  circumstance  made  him  the  possessor 
of  Sio,  he  quietly  gathered  together  such  of  his 
effects  as  he  could  carr\-  in  a  small  bundle,  and. 
without  informing  any  one  of  his  intentions,  set 
out  for  Chicago.  This  was  long  before  the  days 
of  railroad  communication  between  Chicago  and 
the  Maumee\'alley,  and  he  spent  three  days  trav- 
eling through  the  forest  to  reach  Coldwater, 
Mich.,  where  he  boarded  a  tram  which  brought 
him  to  his  destination. 

Arriving  in  Chicago,  Mr.  Brown  found  himself 
in  the  largest  city  he  had  ever  seen  up  to  that 
time,  among  strangers,  and  with  something  less 
than  S4  in  his  pocket.  He  determined  to  make 
the  best  of  the  situation  and  to  obtain  some  sort 
of  employment  without  delay.  Stopping  at  the 
American  Hotel,  one  of  the  well-known  hotels  in 
those  days  in  Chic-ago,  he  began  making  himself 
useful  in  various  ways,  with  the  result  that  by 
the  time  his  money  was  exhausted  he  had  .secured 
a  position  as  night-clerk  in  the  hotel.  His  pro- 
motion tj)  a  more  responsible  position  was  rapid. 
He    was   connected  with  this  enterprise  lor  five 


18 


3b2 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


years.  At  the  end  of  that  time  he  sold  out,  and 
embarked  in  mercantile  business,  which  he  con- 
tinued for  several  years,  until  his  realty  interests 
became  such  as  to  demand  all  his  time  and  atten- 
tion. 

It  developed  early  in  Mr.  Brown's  career  that 
he  was  especialh"  adapted  to  successful  deal- 
ing in  real  estate,  and  he  began  making  invest- 
ments in  realty  as  soon  as  he  was  able  to  com- 
mand any  money  for  that  purpose,  and  his  earliest 
purchases  showed  good  judgment  and  close  calcu- 
lation. Readily  gra.sping  the  idea  that  the  large.st 
profits  in  realty  transactions  are  made  through 
the  subdivision  and  sale  of  lands  in  small  parcels 
to  persons  who  want  homes  or  business  locations, 
he  turned  his  attention  to  the  selection  of  .sites 
eligible  for  that  purpose,  and  has  adhered  to  this 
system  of  operating  to  the  present  time.  Natur- 
ally a  sagacious  man.  it  required  comparatively 
little  e.Kperience  to  make  him  an  expert  judge  ot 
land  values,  and  to  enable  him  to  look  about  and 
take  something  like  an  accurate  measurement  of 
the  city's  prospective  growth. 

As  a  con.sequence  of  this  forecast  of  the  future, 
our  subject  long  since  began  reaching  outside  of 
the  city  limits  of  Chicago,  and  devoting  his  ener- 
gies largely  to  the  building  of  quiet,  orderly,  well- 
laid-out  suburban  villages  adapted  for  homes. 
The  plan  adopted  by  him  has  been  one  which 
commended  itself  to  the  masses  of  home-seekers 
belonging  to  the  middle  and  laboring  classes. 
He  was  the  originator  of  the  monthly  payment 
plan  of  selling  lots,  and  not  only  has  he  disposed 
of  hundreds  of  city  lots  and  larger  parcels  of  land 
in  this  way,  but  in  many  instances  homes  have 
been  built  by  Mr.  Brown  and  his  associates,  and 
sold  on  the  ' '  easy  pajment' '  plan  to  industrious 
mechanics,  tradesmen  and  laborers,  who  were 
thus  enabled  to  become  the  owners  of  their  own 
residences.  Xo  honest,  industrious  man  seeking 
for  a  home  in  good  earnest  ever  appealed  to  Mr. 
Brown  to  be  given  an  opportunity  to  acquire  one 
without  meeting  a  generous  response.  In  hun- 
dreds of  cases  little  more  has  been  required  from 
such  purchasers,  to  begin  with,  than  evidence  of 
fheir  good  intentions,  and  the  man  who  could 
save  $5  a  month  out  of  his  salary  or  wages  was 


put  in  the  way  of  acquiring  a  homestead.  In 
this  way  Ira  Brown  has  perhaps  supplied  a 
greater  number  of  people  with  homes  than  an\- 
man  now  living  in  Chicago,  and  he  has  certainly 
contributed  to  the  building  up  of  a  larger  number 
of  Chicago's  suburbs  than  any  other  person  in  the 
city.  In  this  re.spect  his  record  has  been  a  re- 
markable one,  the  public  records  of  Cook  Counts- 
showing  that  through  his  various  subdivisions  of 
large  bodies  of  land  he  has  added  nearly  fifteen 
thousand  lots  to  the  city  of  Chicago  and  its 
suburbs.  Nor  does  this  represent  the  total  of  his 
operations.  In  1874,  while  spending  the  winter 
in  California,  he  became  largely  interested  in  .San 
Diego  lands,  which  he  subdivided  and  sold  ten 
years  later. 

While  his  work  in  and  about  Chicago  has  been 
alike  beneficial  to  the  community  at  large  and  to 
those  who  were  aided  to  become  property-owners 
through  his  enterpri.se,  he  has  been  practically 
philanthropic  in  the  sense  that  in  helping  others 
he  has  helped  himself  and  the  profits  he  has 
realized  from  of)erations  in  this  fruitful  field  repre- 
sent a  handsome  fortune  of  his  own  Iwilding. 
He  is  interested  in  banking,  is  a  large  .stock- 
holder and  member  of  the  Board  of  Directors  of 
one  of  Chicago's  banks,  and  is  also  a  large  stock- 
holder in  the  Chicago  Title  and  Trust  Company, 
and  in  other  important  enterprises. 

Believing  that  good  fortune  imposes  obligations 
upon  its  po.ssessors,  Mr.  Brown  has  been  a  liberal 
sharer  of  his  wealth  with  educational,  charitable, 
and  religious  institutions  and  enterprises.  A 
member  of  the  Methodist  Church,  he  has  been  a 
liberal  donor  to  the  Northwestern  University  at 
Evanston,  and  it  was  largely  through  liis  gener- 
osity that  the  Ada  Street  Church  of  this  denomi- 
nation was  built  in  Chicago.  As  a  member  of 
the  building  committee  in  this  in.stance,  he  car- 
ried the  church  obligations  until  .such  time  as  the 
congregation  found  it  convenient  to  liquidate 
the  indebtedness.  In  the  work  of  inaugurating 
the  famous  Des  Plaines  Camp  Meeting,  at  which 
thousands  of  western  Methodists  gather  annually, 
he  was  a  prime  mover,  and  in  many  ways  has  he 
given  substantial  assistance  to  the  church  with  ' 
which  he  has  been  identified  since  early  manhood, 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


363 


and  with  which  he  still  retains  his  connection. 
While  he  has  alwa>s  been  much  attached  to  this 
denomination,  he  has  at  the  same  time  been  broad- 
minded  and  liljeral  in  his  religious  views.  This 
is  evidenced  by  the  fact  that  when  Rev.  Dr.  H. 
\V.  Thomas,  one  of  Chicago's  most  illustrious 
preachers,  was  driven  from  the  Methodist  Church 
by  the  heretic-hunters.  Mr.  Brown  was  one  of  the 
first  to  come  to  his  as.sistance,  and  set  on  foot  a 
movement  which  has  kept  him  in  the  niinistr>- 
and  built  up  one  of  the  largest  independent  church 
congregations  in  the  city. 

Mr.  Brown  is  a  member  of  the  Masonic  Order, 
the  Knights  of  Pythias,  and  the  Odd  Fellows, 
and  Encampment  of  Odd  Fellows.  In  politics, 
he  has  been  a  Republican  since  he  cast  his  first 
vote  for  John  C.  Fremont  for  President,  but  he 
has  been  active  only  to  the  extent  of  seeking, 
where  opportunity  offered,  to  promote  the  inter- 
ests of  his  part\-,  and  to  secure  good  local  govern- 
ment for  the  cit\  in  which  he  has  been  so  largely 
interested. 

Mr.  Brown  s  residence  at  Wheaton  occupies  a 
delightful  site,  at  the  crown  of  an  elevation  com- 
manding a  view  of  the  handsome  little  city,  and 
is  surrounded  by  shady  lawns  and  all  the  acces- 
sories of  a  desirable  country  seat.  It  is  but  a  few 
steps  from  College  Avenue  station  of  the  Chicago 
&  Xorthwestem  Railway,  being  thus  convenient 
to  the  western  metropolis,  while  at  the  same  time 
it  is  secluded  from  the  turmoil  and  other  disad- 
vantages of  the  city.  Both  he  and  his  amiable 
wife  are  active  in  the  social  and  other  relations  of 
the  place,  and  are  among  the  most  useful  and 
highly -respected  members  of  the  community. 
Mrs.  Brown  is  a  daughter  of  one  of  the  honored 
pioneers  of  DuPage  County,  Levi  Ballon,  who 
settled  at  Lombard  in  the  year  1S36.  He  subse- 
quently purchased  a  farm  near  Glen  Ellyn,  from 
which  he  moved  to  Wheaton,  where  he  died  May 
7,  1884.  He  was  bom  at  Jordan,  X.  Y.,  No- 
vember 8,  1 8 10,  and  was  a  son  of  Ebeneezer  and 
Marana  ( Ward )  Ballon.  The  family  is  of  French 
or  Norman  origin,  and  it  is  known  that  the  Bil- 
lieus  held  knights'  fees  in  Kent,  Yorkshire  and 
Berkshire,  England,  in  1165.  Ebeneezer  Ballou 
was  bom  in  Newark.  N.  J.,  and  his  parents  are 


supposed  to  have  come  from  France  to  America. 
Levi  Ballou  was  one  of  the  most  active  sup 
porters  of  the  Methodist  Church  at  Wheaton,  be- 
ing one  of  the  first  Stewards,  and  a  Trustee  and 
Class-leader.  He  was  resp>ecte<l  as  one  of  the 
most  upright  and  useful  citizens  of  the  county. 
His  wife.  Mary  Marble,  was  torn  in  Bennington, 
\'t..  March  30,  1810.  and  died  at  Wheaton,  Au- 
gust 2,  1 88 1.  Mrs.  Brown  is  the  second  of  their 
eight  children.  They  have  one  child,  a  daughter 
named  Jentiie,  now  .seventeen  years  of  age. 


-=l. 


^-^ 


c^_ 


-S) 


EHARLES  GARY,  oneofthe  pioneer  family 
of  Gar>s,  who  have  all  been  prominent  in 
the  development  of  DuPage  County,  was 
the  eldest  son  and"  second  child  of  William  and 
Lucy-  Gar>-.  A  complete  account  of  his  ancestry- 
will  be  found  in  this  work,  in  connection  with  the 
biography  of  his  brother,  ErastusGarv".  Charles 
Gan.-  was  born  in  Putnam.  Conn.,  in  1801.  He 
grew  up  on  the  home  farm,  and  received  a  fair 
common-school  education.  In  the  .spring  of  1837 
he  came  to  Illinois  by  way  of  the  Erie  Canal  and 
Great  Lakes,  and  at  once  settled  on  a  farm  in 
Winfield  Township,  at  a  location  ever  since  known 
as  Gary's  Mills.  This  farm  is  now  occupied  by 
his  youngest  son,  Charles  Wesley  Gar>-.  and  is 
on  the  west  branch  of  the  DuPage  River.  At  the 
time  of  its  purchase  by  Mr.  Gary  from  the  Gov- 
ernment ( the  price  being  Si -25  l>eracrei,  it  was 
largely  covered  by  timber,  and  he  set  to  work  to 
clear  it  up,  and  became  an  extensive  and  success- 
ful fanner.  He  was  associated  with  his  brothers 
in  operating  a  mill,  which  gave  the  name  to  the 
location  in  the  early  days.  Here  was  sawed  out 
material  for  houses,  fences,  etc. .  for  the  early  set- 
tlers.    The  mill  is  long  since  gone. 

Mr.  Gar>-  ver>-  early  embraced  the  Christian 
religion,  and  was  for  over  thirty  years  a  local 
preacher  of  the  Methodist  Church.  He  was 
leader  of  the  first  class  formed  in  the  township, 
at  Gary's  Mills,  and  throughout  his  life  was  a 
consistent  and  devout  Christian.  He  aTso  took 
an  active  interest  in  public  concerns,  and  was  a 


364 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


straightforward  Republican.  He  served  as  Town- 
ship Assessor.  Clerk.  Supervisor  and  Justice  of  the 
Peace.  He  assisted  in  organizing  the  townships 
and  school  districts,  and  in  laying  out  roads,  and 
in  many  other  ways  contributed  to  the  material 
development  of  the  county,  as  well  as  to  its  moral 
welfare.  On  the  31st  of  August.  1871,  he  pa.s.sed 
to  the  reward  of  the  faithful  prepared  on  high. 

In  1823  Mr.  Gary  was  married  to  Miss  Melinda 
Morse,  a  native  of  Southbridge,  Mass.  Mrs.  Gary 
passed  away  January  31,  1862.  She  was  a  faith 
ful  meml)er  of  the  Methodist  Church,  and  was 
the  tnie  helpmate  of  her  husband  in  all  the  rela- 
tions of  life.  Her  remains  lie  beside  those  of  her 
husband  in  Wheaton  Cemetery. 

Three  sous  and  four  daughters  were  given  to 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Gar>-,  four  of  whom  are  now  living. 
Mary,  the  eldest,  was  the  wife  of  William  Jordan 
(now  deceased),  and  died  in  \\'infield  in  1882. 
William  is  engaged  in  banking  at  Wheaton. 
Sarah  died  in  1849,  and  George  while  an  infant. 
Elmira  resides  at  .St.  Charles,  111.  Orinda  resides 
with  her  brother  at  Wheaton,  and  Charles  W. 
completes  the  family. 


-^^H-^^-= 


3OHN  J.  MYERS  is  the  oldest  citizen  of  Du- 
Page  County,  and  this  book  would  be  incom- 
plete without  a  .sketch  of  his  life.  He  now 
resides  on  section  17,  Naperville Township,  where 
he  has  long  made  his  home.  He  was  born  in 
Trenton,  Oneida  County,^.  V.,  ten  miles  north 
of  Utica.  on  December  2,  1S02,  and  is  a  son  of 
John  and  Antonetta  (Pepper)  Myers,  both  of 
whom  were  natives  of  Holland.  The  mother  died 
when  John  was  only  seven  years  of  age.  In  1812 
the  father  married  a  lady  of  French  descent.  At 
a  ver\-  early  day  he  had  located  in  Oneida  County, 
where  he  followed  the  occupation  of  farming. 
There  his  second  wife  died,  after  which  he  emi- 
grated to  DuPage  County.  111.,  where  his  last 
daj's  were  spent.  He  passed  away  at  the  age  of 
seventy  j-ears. 

We  now  take  up  the  personal  histor}-  of  John  J. 
Myers,  who  is  so  widely  and  favorably  known  in 


this  community.  When  a  youth  of  only  fourteen 
years,  he  started  out  to  .seek  employment  in  order 
that  he  might  earn  his  own  livelihood.  The  only 
thing  that  he  carried  with  him  was  a  lunch  of 
pork  and  bread.  From  that  time  he  has  been  de- 
pendent upon  his  own  resources,  and  the  succe.ss 
of  his  life  is  the  reward  of  his  own  labors.  He 
walked  to  Pultneyville,  N.  Y.,  and  there  made 
his  home  with  his  grandfather,  Abram  Pepper, 
until  twenty-one  years  of  age.  On  attaining  his 
majority,  he  was  given  a  cow,  a  yoke  of  oxen  and 
a  half-dozen  .sheep.  He  sold  the  oxen  for  $55, 
and  ])ut  his  other  stock  in  a  pasture,  while  he 
went  to  work  b\-  the  month  for  Joseph  Granger, 
of  Wayne  County,  N.  Y.,  b\-  whom  he  was  em- 
plo\ed  for  seven  years.  In  the  summer  he  re- 
ceived Si  1  per  month,  and  through  the  winter 
season  $7.  At  the  end  of  the  .seven  years  he 
l)()Ught  a  tract  of  raw  timbered  land  in  Wayne 
County,  for  which  he  paid  $5  per  acre  in  cash, 
and  with  tlie  aid  of  two  hired  men  he  cleared  and 
improved  that  tract. 

On  March  4.  1833.  Mr.  Myers  married  Laura 
Stolp,  a  native  of  New  York.  They  located  upon 
the  farm,  where  a  house  and  barn  were  built,  and 
there  made  their  home  until  1S35,  when  they  sold 
out  for  S850,  and  came  direct  to  DuPage  County, 
111.  Here  Mr.  Myers  began  farming,  and  after 
nint-  months  he  purchased  the  farm  on  which  he 
now  resides,  building  upon  it  a  log  cabin.  Not 
o!ie  of  his  old  neighbors  of  that  day  is  now  liv- 
ing. He  found  the  county  an  almost  undevel- 
ojicd  wildeniess.  much  of  the  land  being  still  in 
the  po.ssession  of  the  Government.  The  work  of 
progress  and  civilization  seemed  scarcely  begun, 
and  the  county  gave  little  promise  of  the  advance- 
ment which  it  would  soon  make. 

Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Myers  have  been  born  nine 
children;  James,  now  of  California;  George,  who 
is  also  living  in  that  State;  John,  who  served  in 
the  late  war  and  is  now  deceased;  Franklin,  who 
was  killed  in  the  engagement  at  Lookout  Mount- 
ain, and  was  buried  on  the  battlefield;  Henry, 
who  resides  on  the  home  farm;  Janet,  who  died  at 
the  age  of  fifteen  years;  Ellen  Briggs,  at  home; 
Eliza,  wife  of  A.  C.  Wickizer;  and  Nettie,  who 
died  at  the  age  of  one  year. 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL    RECORD. 


',fi. 


Mr.  M><.-rs  is  now  the  owner  of  one  hundred 
and  thirty-three  acres  of  gowl  hmd,  wliich  luis  been 
placed  under  cultivation  through  his  own  efforts. 
The  improvements  ujion  it  stand  as  monuments 
to  his  thrift  and  enterprise.  He  has  been  a  suc- 
cessful farmer,  and  his  labors  have  made  him 
well-to-d<i.  In  1840  Mr.  Myers  voted  for  Will- 
iam Henr>-  Harrison,  and  in  188S  and  1892  he 
supported  Benjamin  Harrison,  the  only  grandson 
of  a  President  ever  elected  to  the  same  office.  In 
his  younger  years  he  was  a  member  of  the  Masonic 
frateniity.  He  and  his  wife  are  the  oldest  couple 
now  hving  in  DuPage  County.  For  more  than 
sixty  years  they  have  traveled  along  life's  jour- 
ney together,  sharing  with  each  other  its  joys  and 
sorrows,  its  adversity  and  its  prosperity.  Each 
has  been  to  the  other  a  true  helpmate,  and  their 
mutual  love  and  confidence  have  increased  year  b> 
year.  Throughout  the  community  they  have 
won  many  warm  friends,  and  we  feel  assured  that 
the  record  of  their  lives  will  be  received  with  in- 
terest bv  manv  of  our  readers. 


=-^-^'^m^ 


EILBERT  E.  KETCHUM,  a  retired  fanner 
living  on  .section  17,  Naperville  Township, 
was  born  on  the  4th  of  August,  1825,  in 
Berkshire  County,  Mass.,  and  on  both  the  pater- 
nal and  maternal  sides  is  of  Scotch  descent.  His 
parents,  Levi  and  Nancy  (Preston)  Ketchum. 
were  also  natives  of  the  Bay  State.  The  father 
was  a  stone-mason  by  trade,  but  in  later  life  he 
followed  farming.  In  1854,  accompanied  by  his 
family,  he  made  his  way  direct  to  DuPage  County, 
111.,  and  located  upon  the  farm  where  his  son  now 
resides,  there  making  his  home  until  his  death, 
which  occurred  at  the  advanced  age  of  eighty- 
six  years  and  six  months.  His  wife  pas.sed  away 
when  eighty-two  years  of  age.  They  had  a  fam- 
ily of  eleven  children,  but  only  four  are  now  liv- 
ing. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  the  sixth  in  order 
of  birth.  He  was  reared  to  manhood  in  Berk- 
shire County,  and  in  the  common  schools  of  the 
neighborhood  acquired  his  education.     With  his 


])arents  he  came  to  the  West,  and  with  them  re- 
mained until  they  were  called  to  the  home  be- 
yond. In  the  year  1849  he  was  united  in  mar- 
riage witli  Sophronia  Millard,  a  native  of  Ver- 
mont, who  died  in  1878.  Two  children  were  born 
of  that  union,  a  son  and  daughter:  Eugene  E., 
now  a  resident  of  Aurora;  and  Henrietta,  de- 
cea.sed.  In  1882  Mr.  Ketchum  was  again  mar- 
ried, his  second  union  being  with  Miss  Hannah 
Tompkins,  a  native  of  New  Jersey,  and  a  daugh- 
ter of  Edward  and  Hannali  Tompkins.  She  grew 
to  womanhood  in  her  native  State,  and  in  1857 
came  to  Illinois.  She  married  Samuel  Ridge- 
way,  and  unto  them  was  born  a  .son,  Joseph,  who 
is  now  deceased. 

For  many  years  Mr.  Ketchum  devoted  his  time 
and  attention  to  agricultural  pursuits,  and  was 
very  successful  in  his  undertakings,  but  has  now 
sold  much  of  his  land  and  is  living  a  retired  life. 
He  cared  for  his  parents  until  their  death,  and  since 
coming  here  has  always  lived  upon  the  old  home- 
stead. Years  of  toil  and  lalior  now  entitle  him  to 
rest,  and  the  result  of  his  former  work,  in  the 
shape  of  a  handsome  competence,  supplies  him 
with  all  the  comforts  and  many  of  the  luxuries 
of  life. 

In  his  political  affiliations,  Mr.  Ketchum  is  a 
supporter  of  the  Republican  party  and  its  princi- 
ples, and  keeps  well  informed  on  the  issues  of  the 
da\- .  He  has  .served  as  Road  Commissioner,  and 
for  fifteen  years  he  acceptably  and  credita))h-  filled 
the  office  of  Justice  of  the  Peace.  In  religious 
belief,  he  is  a  Universali.st. 

b  "^^si  <  ■  T  ">  \^i~^  "3 

0R.  FREDERICK  CHARLES  HAGEMAN. 
one  of  the  most  u.seful  and  influential  citizens 
of  DuPage  County,  and  a  fiirmer  prominent 
citizen  of  Chicago,  was  a  son  of  Dr.  Christopli 
Hageman,  and  was  born  at  Minden,  Prussia,  on 
the  26th  of  November,  1817.  His  mother  died 
when  he  was  a  mere  child,  and  at  the  age  of  six- 
teen he  set  out  for  America.  His  first  employ- 
ment was  on  the  Great  Lakes  as  a  sailor,  and  he 
settled  in  Chicago  in  the  fall  of  1843.      His  father 


366 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


came  to  join  him,  and  was  one  of  three  persons 
who  escaped  from  a  bvirning  steamer  on  Lake 
Erie,  the  brother  and  step-mother  of  our  subject 
being  lost  in  that  disaster.  The  first  regular 
graduating  class  of  five  from  Rush  Medical  Col- 
lege, Chicago,  in  1847,  included  Frederick  C. 
Hageman.  In  connection  with  his  practice,  he 
opened  a  drug  store  on  South  Water  Street,  Chi- 
cago, removing  later  to  North  Clark  Street,  and 
thence  to  Indiana  Street,  where  he  built  the  first 
brick  structure  on  the  North  Side.  Here  he 
served  as  Alderman,  and  was  at  one  time  City 
Phy.sician. 

In  the  spring  of  1852,  Dr.  Hageman  moved  to 
Winfield,  DuPage  County,  and  invested  in  farm 
lands,  becoming  in  time  an  extensive  owner.  He 
lived  there  for  a  few  years,  but  spent  most  of  his 
remaining  years  in  Wheaton,  and  was  a  very  suc- 
cessful physician.  He  was  elected  Coroner  during 
the  first  years  after  coming  here,  and  filled  that 
position  several  terms,  being  the  incumbent  at  the 
time  of  his  death,  which  occurred  on  the  3d  of 
September,  1869. 

Dr.  Hageman  was  an  active  and  public-spirited 
citizen,  and  did  much  to  promote  the  prosperity 
of  the  community.  He  was  active  in  .securing 
the  county  seat  at  Wheaton,  which  involved  the 
construction  of  a  court  house  as  a  gift  to  the 
county.  He  was  reared  in  the  Lutheran  faith, 
but  espou.sed  Universalism,  and  was  an  ardent 
Democrat  in  political  contests,  and  a  member  of  the 
Masonic  order.  He  made  many  addresses  in  sup- 
port of  the  war  for  the  Union  through  Kane,  Du- 
Page and  other  counties,  and  materially  aided  in 
rai.sing  the  Eighth  and  Twelfth  Illinois  Cavalry 
regiments,  and  the  One  Hundred  and  Fifth  In- 
fantry. He  went  out  as  Assistant  Surgeon  of  the 
One  Hundred  and  Forty-first  Infantrj',  which 
served  a  short  time  in  garrison  duty.  He  was  a 
supporter  of  Abraham  Lincoln  in  his  second  can- 
didacy for  President. 

At  Buffalo,  in  June,  1843,  our  subject  married 
Miss  Margaret  Snyder,  a  native  of  Elsass,  Ger- 
manj',  who  came  to  America  when  seven  years 
old  with  her  parents,  George  and  Anna  Marj' 
(Gearhardt)  Snyder.  George  Snyder  was  a  tal- 
ented architect,    but  understanding  no  English, 


he  was  obliged  to  accept  any  employment  that 
offered  when  he  arrived  at  Buffalo.  While  em- 
ployed as  a  hodcarrier  in  the  repair  of  a  church,  he 
noticed  that  the  builders  had  great  difficulty  in 
following  the  plans.  He  essayed  to  explain,  and 
showed  such  interest  and  knowledge  that  an  in- 
terpreter was  obtained,  through  whom  he  so  in- 
telligently directed  the  work  that  he  was  placed 
in  charge,  and  from  that  time  had  no  lack  of  em- 
ployment in  his  profession.  Mrs.  Hageman  was 
born  April  21,  1821,  and  died  November  19, 
1887.  She  was  a  woman  of  much  intelligence 
and  ability,  and  conducted  her  hu.sband's  estate 
with  greater  skill  than  had  marked  his  own  man 
agement  of  it  during  his  life. 

Of  the  six  children  of  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Hageman, 
the  fir.st  died  in  infancy.  Dr.  Frederick  Christian 
Hageman,  of  Chicago,  is  the  .second.  Mary 
(Mrs.  Henry  Grote),  George  W.,  and  Franklin 
Julius  are  residents  of  Wheaton.  Louis  B.  died 
at  Wheaton  I"'ebruary  8,  1892.  aged  thirty-four 
years. 

r^.^ 9 


=m^-^^ 


(s~ 


HARRIS  WASHINGTON  PHILLIPS  was 
born  in  Pittsford,  Rutland  County.  Vt., 
April  3,  1S06,  and  died  in  Glen  l{llyn,  Feb- 
ruary 4,  1882,  respected  b\  all  who  knew  him. 
His  father,  Jacob  Phillijis,  was  a  .son  of  Anthony 
Phillips,  who  settled  in  Pittsford  prior  to  the 
Revolution.  The  family  is  probably  of  English 
origin.  Jacob  Phillips  married  Lucy  Weller,  who 
was  of  Scotch  descent,  and  they  had  three  .sons 
and  a  daughter:  Arden;  Orin;  Columbia,  wife  of 
W.  S.  Wright:  and  Harris  W.  All  are  now  de- 
ceased. 

Mr.  Phillips  whose  name  heads  this  record  was 
educated  in  the  common  .schools,  and  learned  the 
trade  of  harness-making.  On  the  26th  of  June. 
1827,  he  married  Fannie  A.  Conant,  daughter  of 
Eben  Conant,  of  Pittsford,  a  descendant  of  Sir 
Roger  Conant,  who  located  a  colony  of  French 
Huguenots  in  Massachusetts  soon  after  the  massa- 
cre of  St.  Bartholomew.  Another  branch  of  the 
family  located  elsewhere  in  America.  They  were 
all  noted  for  firmness  and  devotion  to  principle. 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


367 


By  the  union  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Phillips  were  lx)ni 
the  follow-ing  children:  Mrs.  Ellen  L.  Scott  and 
Jerome  C,  both  deceased:  and  Charles  A. 

In  1834,  Mr.  Phillips  removed  to  Des  Plaines, 
but  the  following  year  returned  to  Brandon.  Vt. 
In  1849,  he  went  to  Geneva.  111.,  and  was  em- 
ployed in  a  general  store  until  1853.  when  he  re- 
moved to  a  farm  near  Des  Plaines.  In  1864,  he 
came  to  what  is  now  Glen  EUyn,  and  established 
a  store,  which  he  carried  on  in  connection  with 
the  operation  of  his  farm  near  that  place.  Here 
his  remaining  days  were  passed,  devoted  to  his 
business  interests. 

Mr.  Phillips  was  a  pubUc-spirited  and  progress- 
ive citizen,  and  took  a  commendable  interest  in 
everything  pertaining  to  the  welfare  of  the  com- 
munity in  which  he  made  his  home.  In  politics, 
he  took  an  active  interest.  He  first  vote<l  with 
the  Democratic  party,  but  after^vards  became  a 
Whig  and  later  a  Republican.  He  served  for  sev- 
eral years  as  Justice  of  the  Peace  of  Des  Plaines. 
and  proved  a  capable  and  faithful  officer.  His 
wife  died  August  10,  1892,  at  the  age  of  eightj- 
one.  In  early  life  she  was  a  member  of  the  Bap- 
tist Church,  but  aftenvard  united  with  the  Unitar- 
ian Church.  Both  were  highh-  respected  people, 
and  when  called  to  the  home  beyond  their  loss 
was  deeply  mourned. 

Charles  A.  Phillips,  a  representative  of  one  of 
the  early  families  of  Cook  Count>-,  was  bom  in 
Brandon.  Vt..  September  2.  1837,  and  at  the  age 
of  eleven  years  came  to  Illinois  with  his  parents. 
He  attended  Lake  Zurich  Academy,  and  also 
Wauconda  Academy.  Subsequently,  he  spent  one 
year  in  Oberlin  College,  and  in  1861  he  was  grad- 
uated from  the  Union  College  of  Law  in  Chicago. 
Several  \ears  of  his  life  he  devoted  to  teaching, 
and  was  quite  successful  in  that  line  of  work.  In 
1863.  he  was  appointed  United  States  Deput>- 
Marshal  for  Arizona,  which  position  he  accept- 
ably filled.  He  also  ser\ed  as  Postmaster  at  La 
Paz,  and  was  Coroner  and  acting  Sheriff.  On  the 
expiration  of  two  years,  he  returned  to  Glen 
Ellvn.  and  has  made  his  home  here  and  in  Chi- 
cago continuously  since.  At  the  time  of  the 
great  fire  in  the  latter  city  he  had  much  valuable 
property  destroyed  there  and  lost  very  heavily. 


For  many  years  he  has  been  engaged  in  dealing 
quite  extensively  in  real  estate.  He  is  a  conser\- 
ative  and  successful  business  man.  who  by  well- 
directetl  efforts  has  won  success.  Oppression  never 
finds  place  in  his  treatment  of  a  debtor  or  a  tenant, 
but  a  considerate  and  gentlemanly  course  has  al- 
ways characterized  his  dealings. 

On  the  4th  of  July.  1859,  Mr.  Phillips  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Amelia  Curtis,  and 
to  them  were  born  three  children:  Mabel,  now 
deceased:  and  Arthur  L.  and  Alice  M..  twins. 
The  fonner  is  now  a  civil  engineer  in  Oklahoma 
Territon-.  Mr.  Phillips  takes  great  delight  in 
hunting,  and  makes  frequent  trips  to  various 
hunting-grounds.  This  is  his  favorite  means  of 
recreation,  and  in  it  betakes  great  delight. 


=^-^ 
^^<^ 


^ 


(=~ 


HENRY  CARPENTER  died  on  the  evening 
of  June  7,  1891,  a  few  months  over  eightj-- 
one  years  of  age.  It  is  not  an  easy  task  to 
speak  of  him  wholly  as  the  plain  citizen  only, 
which  he  always  assumed  to  be,  for  he  was  in 
many  resi>ects  a  remarkable  man.  He  was  bom 
on  the  22d  of  February-,  i8io,  in  Washington 
County,  N.  Y.  His  mother  died  when  he  was  a 
child,  and  his  father  when  he  was  but  eleven 
years  of  age,  and  his  early  life  was  one  of  hard- 
ship and  penurj-.  He  was  of  a  peculiarly  sensi- 
tive, and,  as  he  says  of  himself,  gloomy  nature, 
and  these  characteristics  caused  him  to  remem- 
ber with  extraordinary  exactness  and  tenacity 
ever>-  detail  of  his  early  privations,  and  he  could 
not  forget  their  sting.  He  entered  an  appren- 
ticeship as  saddler  and  harness-maker  when  about 
fourteen  years  of  age,  and  remained  in  that  sen-ice 
until  he  was  nearly  twent>-one,  when  he  started 
out  for  himself.  After  months  of  labor  and  mis- 
fortune, he  found  an  opportunity  to  establish  him- 
self in  business  in  Linden,  on  the  20th  of  May, 
1831,  at  the  age  of  twenty-one  years.  Here  he 
worked  day  and  night,  and  soon  reached  a  posi- 
tion of  comfort  and  independence  which  he  had 
not  known  before. 

In  October,  1832,  our  subject   was  married  to 


368 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


Miss  Martha  Blanchard.     Of  her  he  himself  says: 
"  She  was  as  poor  as  myself,  yet  she  was  rich  in 
goodness,   purity   and  love.     She  has  ever  been 
my  better  angel.     In  all  my  weary  way  through 
life  she  has  sustained  nie  by  her  gentle,  confiding 
.spirit."      He  continued  in   business    successfully 
for  some  years,  and  in  1835  was  elected  Justice  of 
the  Peace,  continuing  in  the  office  until  he  came  to 
Illinois,  in  1839.      He  then   bought  one  hundred 
acres  of  land  of  Walter  Blanchard,  his  brother-in- 
law,  and  in  May.  1839,  started   for   Illinois.      He 
found  living  at   Downer's  Grove  at  that  time  the 
six  families  of  Blodgett.Curtiss.  Blanchard.  Smith, 
Paige  and  Wallace.     On  his  arrival  here  he  sold 
his  team  and  outfit  and  returned  to  New  York  to 
arrange  his  business  for  a  permanent  residence  in 
Illinois.     He  came  back  here  June  27,  1840,  after 
thirtv  days"   travel,  and  remained  here  until  the 
.spring  of  1842,  when  he  went  back  to  New  York 
and  went  to  work  at  his  trade;  but  again  sold  out 
and  came  back  in  1843.    Mr.  Carpenter  was  never 
a  farmer,  and  he  found  it  a  difficult  matter  to  make 
a  living  at  farming,  so  in  1 844  he  sold  his  place  and 
set  about  the  commencement  of  the  business  of 
merchant,  and  in  that  succeeded.     He  was  made 
Postmaster  in  1843,  but  was  .supplanted  by  an  ap- 
pointee of  President  Polk  upon  the  change  in  the 
administration. 

After  various  changes  in  business,  Mr.  Carpen- 
ter again  bought  a  stock  of  goods,  and  with  a 
partner  went  into  trade  in  the  year  1851.  He 
continued  in  this  until  the  death  of  his  son  Wal- 
ter, who  was  killed  by  the  explosion  of  an  engine 
while  in  the  employ  of  the  Northwestern  Rail- 
way, on  the  9th  of  February-,  1856.  He  had  pre- 
viously lost  a  son,  and  that  almost  overwhelmed 
him  with  grief,  but  when  W^alter  was  killed  he 
seemed  unable  to  bear  it,  and  he  says  of  it  that 
' '  it  nearly  unsettled  my  mind  and  unfitted  me  for 
my  business,  and  I  sold  out  m>-  place  and  busi- 
ness. I  thought  then  that  I  could  only  wait  for 
the  final  break-up  of  all  hope  for  the  future:  that 
prosperity  was  not  for  me,  that  the  fates  were 
against  me  from  birth  to  the  present;  but  the 
hopeful  faith  of  the  dear  wife  sustained  me,  and 
we  plodded  along  together  tn.-ing  to  bridge  over 
the  chasm ;  but  energy  and  faith  were  gone  and 


the  future  was  all  a  blank.  So  we  moved  along 
as  happy  as  conditions  would  allow;  ill  health  and 
care  wearing  with  creeping  age,  leaving  me  all 
unfitted  for  the  next  great  calamity  to  follf)w." 

These  are  eventualU   "  la.st  words."  for  he  does 
not  conclude  the  history.     But  we  may   be  sure 
that  he  referred  to  the  death  of  his  wife,  which 
occurred  on  the  2d  of  October,  1882,  and  it  is  lit- 
erally true  that   he  never   recovered    from    that 
"calamity,"  but    "waited"    from  that  time  on, 
patiently,  to  the  hour  of  his  own  release.      In  an 
early  day  he  occupied  a  large  place  in  the  hearts 
of  the    people,    and    his    advice    was   sought    in 
every  direction   where  differences  arose,  and  his 
clear  head  and  sound  judgment  usually  smo.othed 
every  difficult\  .      The  young  and  ambitious  box- 
found   in   him   an   adviser   whose   wise   words   he 
could  follow   with    the   greatest    safety:    and    his 
words  of  encouragement  to  energetic  and  ambi- 
tious vouth  were  often  better  than  gold,  the  mem- 
orv  of  them  being  still  held  close  in  the  hearts  of 
those  who  were  fortunate  enough  to  receive  them 
from    his   lips.     Among    others  to   whom    the.se 
words  apply   is  Judge   H.    W.    Blodgett,    of  the 
United  States  Court,  whose  high  regard  for  this 
modest  citizen  he  has   always   been    pleased    to 
give  expre.ssion  to.      Generally  his  thought  was 
so  clean  and  so  pointedly  and  forcibly  expressed 
that  he  made  an  impression  upon  the  world  about 
him  that  no  other  man  within  the  range  of  his  ac 
quaiutance  did.     He  believed  in   God.   and  that 
the  great  law  of  the  universe  is  progress,   that 
that  law  never  cea.ses  its  action,  and  that  the  hu- 
man spirit,   in  obedience  to  that   law,  is  able  to 
.show  this  truth  to  the  world  after  the  body  is  laid 
aside  more  fully  and  grandly  than  ever  before  in 
human  history-.     No  man  that  ever  lived  loved 
the  right  more  unreservedly,  or  hated  the  wrong 
more  strongly,   than  he.     In  the  power  to  put  a 
point  wittily,  either  with  the  pen  or  in  speech,  he 
had  no  equal   within  the  circle  of  his  acquaint- 
ance, and  few  anywhere  ever  exceeded  him.  and 
disloyaltj-  or  dishonest}-  were  often  sharply  scored 
by  his  keen  wit.     And  thus  passed  away  from 
among  us  one  of  those  useful  pioneers  who  helped 
to  lay  the  foundations  of  our  community  on  the 
'   basis  of  integrity  and  conscience,   and  who  left 


Taylor  S.  Warnk. 


PORTR.\IT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


371 


with   us  that  good 
prized  than  rubies. 


name   which    is  more   to  l)e 


The  foregoing  was  written  by  Charles  Carpen- 
ter, who  knew  the  subject  well. 


-W'LOR  S.  \V.\RXE  is  engage<l  in  farming 
on  section  29.  Winfield  Township,  where 
he  has  two  hundre<l  and  seven  acres  of  valu- 
able land,  constituting  one  of  the  desirable  and 
highly  improved  farms  of  the  county.  Having 
.secured  land  from  the  Government,  he  began  its 
development,  and  where  once  was  wild  prairie, 
waving  fields  of  grain  now  delight  the  eye. 
There  are  good  buildings  tipon  the  place,  and  its 
neat  and  thrifh  appearance  well  indicates  the  en- 
terprise of  the  owner. 

Mr.  Warne  was  bom  in  Warren  County. 
X.  J..  January  8,  1819,  and  is  a  son  of  John 
Wanie.  who  was  a  native  of  the  same  State,  and 
was  of  English  and  German  descent.  His  ances- 
tors were  among  the  first  to  found  a  colony  in 
Xew  Jersey.  The  mother  of  our  subject  bore  the 
maiden  name  of  Sarah  Stires.  She.  too,  was 
bom  in  Xew  Jersey,  and  was  of  German  descent. 
The  father  followed  mtrchandising  in  his  native 
State.  He  was  bom  on  a  fann.  and  there  lived 
until  thirteen  years  of  age.  when  his  father  bound 
him  out  for  eight  years  to  a  merchant.  In  1S31 
he  emigrated  to  Michigan,  and  near  Ann  Arbor 
taught  school  the  succeeding  winter.  In  the 
spring  of  1S32  he  returned  to  his  old  home  and 
took  his  family  to  Ann  Arbor,  where  he  lived 
until  the  spring  of  1834.  During  that  time  he 
served  as  Town  Clerk  of  Ann  Arbor,  and  followed 
farming  upon  one  hundred  and  forty  acres  of 
Government  land.  In  the  spring  of  1S34  he  came 
by  team  to  what  is  now  DuPage  County,  locat- 
ing in  Winfield  Township.  He  cros.sed  the  site 
of  Joliet,  111.,  but  not  a  house  marked  the  place. 
Making  a  claim  of  three  hundred  and  twenty 
acres,  partly  prairie  and  partly  timber  land,  he 
erected  a  log  cabin.  18x24  feet,  and  l)egan  the 
development  of  a  farm. 


The  tamily  lived  in  their  covered  wagon  for  t\vo 
weeks,  while  Mr.  Wame  and  his  boys  felled  the 
trees,  prepared  the  logs,  and  built  the  small  log- 
cabin  .  The  roof  was  made  of  •  shakes, " "  and  was 
held  in  position  by  poles  laid  lengthwise  of  the 
building,  while  the  floor  was  of  -puncheons." 
and  not  a  nail  or  board  entered  into  the  constmc- 
tion  of  this  primitive  abode. 

Eight  years  later  the  land  came  into  market 
and  he  purcha.sed  it  of  the  Government.  His 
nearest  trading-po.st  at  that  time  was  Chicago, 
and  among  the  settlers  of  the  county,  there  were 
many  Indians.  Taylor  Wame  went  to  Chicago 
in  1S35.  when  there  were  four  thousand  Indians 
who  had  .gone  there  to  receive  their  pay,  S80.000. 
from  the  Government.  Mr.  Wame.  father  of  our 
subject,  died  on  the  old  homestead  June  6.  1888. 
at  the  advanced  age  of  ninety-three,  and  he  was 
laid  to  rest  in  Big  Woods  Cemeter> .  In  politics, 
he  was  a  stalwart  Democrat.  In  1836  he  sur- 
veyed and  laid  out  the  roads  of  this  couut\-.  and 
he  also  helped  organize  the  first  school  in  Du- 
Page County.  With  the  development  of  this 
community  he  was  prominently  identified,  and 
well  desenes  mention  among  its  honored  pio- 
neers.    His  wife  passed  away  March  31,  1887. 

Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Wame  were  bom  nine  chil- 
dren, of  whom  .seven  are  yet  living.  Tavlor  S.  is 
the  eldest:  Daniel  S..  a  farmer  of  Winfield  Town- 
ship, is  now  seventy-two  years  of  age:  Samuel 
died  in  1856:  Susan  is  the  wife  of  Albert  Jones,  a 
retired  fanner  of  Batavia:  Marj-.  twin  sister  of 
Susan,  is  the  wife  of  Asel  Gates,  of  Wheaton: 
Clarissa,  wife  of  Wilson  F.  Blackman,  died  in 
1891.  in  her  sixtieth  year:  Sarah  is  the  wife  of 
Gilbert  Morgan,  a  retired  famier  residing  in  Chi- 
cago: and  one  child  died  in  infancy. 

Taylor  S.  Wame  accompanied  his  parents  to 
Michigan,  and  when  in  his  sixteenth  year  came 
to  DuPage  County.  In  the  winter  of  1834  he 
split  nine  thousand  rails.  There  were  no  .schools 
for  about  three  years  after  his  arrival,  and  the  first 
one  was  held  in  a  small  log  building,  which  was 
erected  in  1837.  where  the  Congregational  Church 
now  stands.  Mr.  Wames  privileges,  therefore, 
were  ver>-  limited.  He  remained  with  his  father 
until  twenty-five  years  of  age.   and  then  entered 


372 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD, 


from  the  Government  ninety  acres  of  land,  a  part 
of  his  present  farm.  He  was  married  November 
20,  1844,  to  Miss  Phalana  Blackman,  and  to 
them  were  bom  two  children:  Ella,  wife  of  John 
Mather:  and  Phalana.  wife  of  Henry  Guild.  The 
mother  died  August  16,  1849,  and  on  the  12th  of 
November,  1850,  Mr.  Wame  married  Miss  Har- 
riet Bradley.  They  had  three  children,  but 
Emma  is  now  deceased.  Abbie  is  the  wife  of 
Henn,-  E.  Bartholomew;  and  Eddie  now  operates 
the  farm.  The  mother  of  these  children  pas,sed 
away  August  23.  1886.  and  was  buried  in  Big 
Woods  Cemeter}-. 

Mr.  Wame  is  a  .strong  temperance  man,  and 
votes  with  the  Prohibition  party.  He  has  ser\ed 
as  School  Director  for  a  number  of  years,  and  the 
cause  of  education  finds  in  him  a  warm  friend. 
Since  1836  he  has  been  a  faithful  member  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  and  has  been  ac- 
tiveh  interested  in  church  and  benevolent  work. 
His  life  has  been  a  busy  and  useful  one,  has  been 
well  and  worthily  pa.s.sed,  and  his  example  is  de- 
ser\-ing  of  emulation.  He  has  won  the  confidence 
and  good-will  of  all,  and  has  a  host  of  warai 
friends  throughout  the  community-. 


l^-^ 


[=~ 


EEORGE  WASHINGTON  HAGEMAN,  a 
leading  citizen  of  Wheaton,  is  the  fourth 
child  of  Dr.  Frederick  C.  Hageman  (see  biog- 
raphy elsewhere),  and  was  bora  in  Chicago  Jan- 
uar\-  13,  1849.  He  was  three  years  old  when  the 
family  came  to  DuPage  County,  and  received  his 
primarv-  education  in  the  public  schools  of  the 
city  of  Wheaton,  finishing  with  three  years  at 
Wheaton  College.  At  the  age  of  eighteen  years 
he  took  up  house-painting,  which  he  has  followed 
ever  since.  Much  of  his  work  has  been  done  in 
Chicago,  but  his  headquarters  have  always  been  in 
Wheaton,  where  he  has  sen'ed  many  years  as 
Fire  Marshal.  He  is  the  owner  of  several  houses 
which  he  has  constructed  in  this  city.  He  ad- 
heres to  the  political  precepts  of  his  father,  and 
entertains  ver\-  liberal  views  on  religious  matters. 
In   1 88 1   he  married  Miss  Tillie  Schatz.  who  was 


bom  at  Glen  Ellyn,  and  died  at  Wheaton  March 
15,  1888.  in  her  thirtieth  year.  She  was  a  daugh- 
ter of  William  Schatz,  whose  biography  will  be 
found  on  another  page  of  this  work.  A  son, 
Frederick  William  Hageman,  is  the  offspring  of 
this  union.  Mr.  Hageman  takes  a  lively  interest 
in  the  prosperity  of  Wheaton  and  the  county,  and 
enjoys  the  respect  and  good-will  of  the  com- 
munity. 


EHARLES  P.  BRYAN  was  born  in  Chicago, 
October  2,  1855.  His  childhood  was  spent 
at  Elmhurst,  where  his  parents  took  up  their 
residence  in  1856.  Young  Bryan  completed  his 
education  at  the  University  of  \"irginia  and  the 
Columbia  Law  School.  He  was  admitted  to  the 
Bar  in  Washington,  D.  C,  in  1878.  The  follow- 
ing year  he  removed  to  Colorado,  where  he  en- 
gaged in  mining  and  in  editorial  and  literary 
work.  He  edited  the  Denver  /ii/er  Offan  and  the 
Colorado  Mining  Ciazette,  which  he  owned,  and 
was  elected  President  of  the  Colorado  Editorial 
Association  in  1884.  A  year  after  his  arrival  in 
the  Rocky  Mountains  he  was  chosen  to  represent 
Clear  Creek  Countj-  in  the  Legislature,  of  which 
he  was  the  youngest  member.  He  was  Chairman 
of  the  Railroad  Committee.  As  champion  of  the 
people  against  monopolies,  he  was  called  the 
Plumed  Knight  of  the  Rockies."  He  had  a 
voice  in  every  Republican  State  convention  during 
his  sojourn  in  Colorado,  and  stumped  the  State 
for  Blaine.  Twice  he  was  urged  by  the  slate- 
makers,  but  declined  to  allow  his  name  to  be  pre- 
sented to  the  Republican  State  Convention  as  a  can- 
didate for  Secretary-  of  State.  The  probable  nom- 
ination for  Lieutenant  Governor  was  also  offered 
him  as  an  inducement  to  remain  in  Colorado. 
Filial  duty,  however,  called  him  back  to  Illinois 
in  1885. 

In  1890,  Col.  Br>an  was.  unsolicited,  nominated 
for  the  Legislature  and  elected.  In  1892.  he  was 
re-elected  to  represent  DuPage  County.  His  chief 
efiforts  in  the  Legislature  have  been  directed  to- 
ward ballot  reform.  World's  Fair   and  National 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


^7i 


Guard  measures,  and  those  locally  of  interest  to 
his  constituents.  As  a  boy,  he  entered  the  First 
Regiment  of  Illinois  National  Guards,  and  has 
nearly  ever  since  ,ser\-ed  in  the  State  troiips  of  Illi- 
nois or  Colorado,  having  been  commissioned  Aide- 
de-Camp  by  four  Goveniors.  Col.  Bryan  is  now 
on  the  general  staff  of  the  Illinois  National 
Guard.  His  occupation  is  that  of  contributor  to 
newspapers  and  magazines,  his  line  of  work  be- 
ing editorial.  lii.>;torical  and  descriptive. 


-=]. 


^^f^ 


(^ 


I  HSTER  PEET  NARAMORE,  the  editor  and 
It  proprietor  of  the  Downer's  Grove  Riportet, 
L^  is  a  native  of  DuPage  County.  He  was  bom 
in  Lisle  Township  on  the  nth  of  December. 
1S43.  ^"d  is  the  only  survnving  son  of  Daniel 
Hubbard  and  Eunice  ( Peet )  Naramore.  pioneer 
settlers  of  this  county. 

The  father  of  the  subject  of  this  notice  was  de- 
scended from  an  old  New  England  family,  and 
was  born  in  Rutland  County.  \'t..  December  10. 
1803.  His  father,  Joel,  was  a  soldier  in  the  War 
of  18 12,  and  died  of  con.sumption  at  Sacket's  Har- 
bor, while  in  the  -senice.  leaving  a  large  family. 

D.  H.  Naramore  was  reared  upon  a  farm,  and 
after  arriving  at  maturity  learned  the  black- 
smith's trade.  In  1835  he  came  West,  and  lo- 
cated in  what  is  now  DuPage  County .  He  bought 
a  claim  to  some  land,  and  purchased  the  same 
from  the  Government  when  it  came  into  market, 
commencing  its  cultivation  two  >'ears  later.  In 
February,  1837,  he  married  Miss  Eunice  Peet, 
who  was  bom  at  Benton,  \"t.,  July  24,  1815. 
Her  parents  were  Wheelock  and  Alcy  1  Hickok) 
Peet,  the  former  a  native  of  Litchfield  County, 
Conn.,  and  the  latter  of  William.stown.  Mass. 
.Mrs.  Naramore's  mother  diefl  in  1832,  and  a  few 
years  later  she  came  We.st  with  her  sislei ,  in  com- 
pany with  the  Rev.  N.  C.  Clark,  who  was  one  of 
the  first  Congregational  preachers  in  this  State, 
and  for  many  years  a  prominent  citizen  of  El- 
gin,  111. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Naramore  were  the  parents  of 
five  children,  but  only  two  grew  to  maturity,  viz.:    1 


Lucy  Amelia,  who  is  the  wife  of  John  Stanley,  a 
pioneer  of  1835;  and  the  gentleman  whose  name 
heads  this  notice.  Mr.  Naramore  was  a  Whig  in 
early  life,  but  liecame  a  supporter  of  the  Republi- 
can party  on  its  formation.  He  is  deceased,  but 
Mrs.  Naramore  is  still  living,  and  has  a  plea.sant 
home  with  her  son. 

Lester  P.  Naramore  was  reared  upou  the  old 
homestead  in  Lisle  Township,  and  was  educated  in 
the  district  school  and  at  the  academy  in  Naper- 
ville,  after  which  he  took  a  busine.ss  course  in  a 
commercial  college  at  Aurora. 

On  the  3d  of  February.  1869,  he  married  Miss 
.May  H.  Pinches,  and  sub.sequently  became  a 
resident  of  Downer's  Grove,  where  he  has  since 
resided.  About  two  years  ago.  he  founded  and 
began  the  publication  of  the  Reporter,  a  local 
newspaper  that  is  an  able  eji^nent  of  Republican 
principles.  In  his  journalistic  career  he  is  ably 
assisted  by  his  estimable  wife,  who  possesses  lit- 
erary ability  in  a  marked  degree,  and  evinces  an 
aptitude  for  journalism.  The  y^c/o;/*"/- vigorously 
advocates  what  its  proprietor  belie\es  to  be  right, 
and  as  persistently  opposes  wrong. 


\k^^ 


(=- 


RVIN  PERLEY  HINDS  has  for  a  quarter 
^  of  a  cent\ir>-  been  prominently  identified 
_  with  the  growth  and  upbuilding  of  Hins- 
dale in  all  its  leading  interests.  He  is  now  a 
dealer  in  lumber  and  railroad  materials.  Born  in 
Cheshire  County,  N.  H.,  on  the  loth  of  March. 
1831,  he  is  one  of  five  children  who.se  par- 
ents were  Perle\  and  Sarah  (  Lawrence  \  Hinds, 
who  were  both  natives  of  New  England.  The 
paternal  grandfather  was  a  New  Hampshire 
farmer,  and  reared  a  family  of  seven  children. 
The  father  removed  to  Erie  County.  Pa.,  where 
he  carried  on  agricultural  pursuits  until  his  death 
in  1867,  at  the  age  of  sixty-four  years.  The 
mother  died  when  Ervin  was  only  a  lad  of  eight 
summers.  They  were  prominent  members  of  the 
Methodist  Epi.scopal  Church,  and  t<.K)k  quite  an 
active  part  in  church  work.  Of  their  familv  of 
three  sons  and  two  daughters,  only  three  are  now 


374 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


living:  Sarah  Malveua,  widow  of  Asa  Battles, 
who  makes  her  home  near  Girard,  Pa. :  Ervin 
P. ;  and  Calvin  Jennison,  an  attorne\ -at-law  of 
Girard,   Pa. 

Mr.  Hinds  of  this  sketch  was  feared  and  edu- 
cated in  Erie  County,  and  to  his  father  gave  the 
benefit  of  his  services  upon  the  home  farm  until 
he  had  arrived  at  man"s  estate.  He  then  engaged 
in  teaching  in  a  district  school  for  a  year,  after 
which  he  was  employed  as  a  teacher  in  the  Girard 
Academy.  He  next  entered  the  employ  of  the 
Northwestern  Insurance  Company,  of  P!rie.  and 
was  transferred  to  Philadelphia.  Later  he  was 
elected  Secretary  of  the  Merchants'  Insurance 
Company  of  that  city,  which  position  he  subse- 
quently resigned  to  embark  in  the  lumber  bu.si- 
ness  in  central  Penn.sylvania.  At  length  he  de- 
termined to  try  his  fortune  in  the  West,  and  em- 
igrated to  Minnesota,  purchasing  an  interest  in 
the  Minnesota  Valley  Stage  Coinpan>-.  of  which 
he  became  manager. 

Before  leaving  the  Ea.st.  Mr.  Hinds  was  married, 
on  the  Sth  of  January,  1857,  to  Miss  Man,-  Ellen, 
a  daughter  of  Hon.  George  H.  and  Louise  (Stew- 
art) Cutler.  Five  children  have  been  born  unto 
them,  three  sons  and  two  daughters:  George  Cut- 
ler, who  died  at  the  age  of  three  years;  Charles 
Edmund:  Minnie  Louise;  Ervin  Perley,  Jr. ;  and 
Lillian  Cutler.  Charles  Edmund  married  Miss 
Marietta  Georgia  Pond,  and  they  have  two 
daughters,  Marinette  and  Marguerite.  Minnie 
Louise  is  the  wife  of  George  Baker  Robbins,  and 
they  have  three  sons,  William,  Cutler  Hinds  and 
George  Baker,  Jr. 

About  1863.  Mr.  Hinds  removed  to  Milwau- 
kee. Wis.,  and  .purchased  stock  in  the  Pennsyl- 
vania Oil  Compain-.  whose  business  was  subse- 
quently removed  to  Chicago,  where  our  subject 
was  engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  oils  at  the 
time  of  the  great  fire.  In  the  spring  of  1872  he 
again  embarked  in  the  lumber  business  in  Chi- 
cago, which  he  has  followed  continuously  and 
successfully  since.  For  nearl\-  twentx -five  years 
he  was  associated  with  Sylvester  Goodenow,  but 
in  1 89 1  he  bought  out  his  partner  and  admitted 
his  son,  Charles  E..  to  a  partnership  in  the  bus- 
iness.    Under  the  firm  name  of  E.    P.   Hinds  & 


Son  they  are  now  handling  an  extensive  trade, 
which  amounts  to  over  half  a  million  dollars  an- 
nually. 

In  October.  186S,  Mr.  Hinds  came  to  Hinsdale, 
and  was  chosen  as  one  of  the  Trustees  of  the  vil- 
lage on  its  organization  in  1872.  This  position 
he  has  filled  for  si.xteen  years.  He  was  the  fir.st 
President  elected  b>  the  vote  of  the  people,  and  is 
now  .serving  his  ninth  tenn  in  that  office.  He  is 
also  a  member  of  the  Township  Board  of  School 
Trustees,  and  the  prompt  and  faithful  manner  in 
which  he  has  discharged  his  official  duties  has 
won  him  the  connnendation  of  all  concerned. 
Socially,  he  is  a  member  of  Hinsdale  Council  of 
the  Royal  Arcanum,  and  him.self  and  wife  are 
identified  with  the  Unity  Church.  They  have  a 
pleasant  home  in  Hinsdale,  and  Mr.  Hinds  owns 
considerable  property  in  Chicago  and  elsewhere. 
He  is  now  serving  his  sixth  year  as  Pre.sident  of 
the  Hin.sdale  Building  and  Loan  Association, 
which  is  in  a  flourishing  condition.  He  has  ever 
been  prominent  in  public  affairs,  and  is  in  touch 
with  even,-  enterprise  calculated  to  prove  of  pub- 
lic benefit.  Through  the  legitimate  channels  of 
busine.ss.  and  as  the  result  of  good  management, 
industn,-  and  upright  dealing,  he  has  won  a  hand- 
some competence,  and  ri.sen  to  a  position  of  afiBu- 
ence. 


"SI 


^f^ 


US. 


eAVID  JOHN  GRANT,  of  Wheaton.wasbom 
in  Brantford.  Ontario,  October  10,  1834, 
and  comes  of  good  old  RevolutionaPi'  stock. 
He  is  also  descended  from  one  of  the  earliest  fam- 
ilies of  Connecticut.  The  first  ancestor  in  America 
was  Matthew  Grant,  who  cro.s.sed  the  Atlantic 
from  Inverness-shire,  Scotland,  in  1640.  Elisha 
Grant,  the  grandfather  of  our  subject,  was  a  na- 
tive of  Tolland.  Conn.,  and  a  cousin  of  Noah 
Grant,  the  grandfather  of  Gen.  U.  S.  Grant. 
During  the  Revolutionary  War  he  aided  in  the 
struggle  for  independence.  He  wedded  Mary 
West,  a  relative  of  Benjamin  West,  the  famous 
painter,  and  their  son  Isaac  became  the  father  of 
our  subject.     Elisha  Grant  was  a  Revolutionary 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


375 


hero,  and  ser\ed  as  Quartermaster  of  a  Massachu- 
setts regiment.  He  was  plowing  when  the  news 
of  the  battle  of  Lexington  reached  him.  He  at 
once  unhitched  his  team  from  the  plow,  and  be- 
gan to  draw  provisions  for  the  regiment,  which 
he  soon  joinetl.  .ser\ing  for  three  years.  Mem- 
bers of  the  Grant  family  have  fought  in  even.- 
war  in  this  countr>-.  Isaac  Grant  married  Mar- 
garet McFadden.  who  was  born  on  the  island  of 
Tiree,  off  the  west  coast  of  Scotland.  Her  father. 
Archibald  McFadden.  was  the  owner  and  captain 
of  a  coa.sting-vessel  and  was  also  engaged  in 
merchandising.  He  came  to  America  in  1821. 
and  acquired  extensive  land  interests  near  Simcoe, 
Ontario,  where  he  resided  until  his  death,  as  did 
his  wife.  Her  maiden  name  was  Mar>  McLean, 
and  she  was  a  relative  of  Lord  Coll.  a  member  of 
the  Scotch  Parliament,  in  whose  honor  McFad- 
den" s  vessel  was  named. 

In  1843,  Isaac  Grant  came  with  his  family  to 
DuPage  County,  locating  in  York  Township, 
where  he  continued  to  reside  until  called  to  the 
home  beyond.  He  died  while  visiting  in  Leyden, 
111.,  in  1868.  at  the  age  of  seventy-two.  He  was 
a  ver\-  patriotic  man.  and  when  the  RelxUion 
broke  out  he  offered  his  ser\-ices  as  a  member  of 
Col.  Brackett' sea  vain.-  regiment,  but  was  rejected 
on  account  of  his  age.  He  afterwards  enlisted  in 
a  pioneer  corps,  and  sen-ed  for  more  than  a  year. 
By  profession  he  was  a  veterinarx-  surgeon,  and 
had  an  extensive  practice  in  that  line.  His  wife 
died  in  Wheaton.  September  24.  1882.  at  the  age 
of  seventy-six.  She  was  a  member  of  the  College 
Church  and  an  estimable  lady. 

In  the  Grant  family  were  the  following  chil- 
dren: Mar>-  A.,  wife  of  J.  D.  Sinclair,  of  Liver- 
more.  Iowa:  Elisha  H..  who  died  at  the  age  of 
twenty  years:  Sarah  X..  deceased:  Orris  F..  who 
died  in  childhood:  David  J.,  the  next  younger: 
Margaret  J.,  the  wife  of  G.  Miller,  who  is  living 
retired  in  Wheaton:  Elizabeth  A.,  now  deceased: 
Isaac  J.,  who  resides  in  Elgin.  111.:  Orris  \V..  who 
served  for  three  years  in  the  Union  army,  and 
was  a  doctor  by  profession,  but  is  now  decea.sed; 
Edward  M..  who  has  also  pa.s.sed  away:  and  El- 
eanor M.,  the  wife  of  Prof.  E.  D.  Bailey,  of  Wash- 
ington, D.  C. 


Mr.  Grant  of  this  sketch  was  only  nine  years 
old  when  the  family  came  to  DuPage  County. 
He  attended  schotil  for  two  months,  walking  three 
miles  to  receive  .such  instruction  as  the  primitive 
schools  of  that  day  afforded.  At  the  age  of  four- 
teen he  became  a  teamster,  and  followed  that 
work  for  some  time.  Much  of  his  life  has  been 
devoted  to  fanning.  When  the  war  broke  out,  he 
was  found  loyal,  and  he  enlisted  August  2S,  i,S62, 
in  Company  F,  One  Hundred  and  Fifth  Illinois 
Infantr}'.  He  participated  in  the  battles  of  Resaca. 
Kingston.  Burnt  Hickory-.  Kenesaw  Mountain. 
Marietta,  the  siege  of  Atlanta,  the  march  to  the 
sea,  the  siege  of  Savannah  and  the  Carolina  cam- 
paign. He  took  part  in  all  the  engagements  of 
his  regiment  and  was  present  at  the  surrender  of 
Gen.  Johnston.  He  was  never  in  the  hospital 
until  after  that  event.  On  the  27th  of  May.  1S65. 
he  was  honorably  di.scharged  and  returned  to 
Wheaton. 

On  the  22d  of  April.  iS^.S.  Mr.  Grant  wedded 
Mar>  M.  Sackett.  daughter  of  Joshua  S.  and 
Elvira  (  Brownell  I  Sackett.  and  a  native  of  Riv- 
erside. Cook  County.  She  was  a  lady  of  marked 
decision  of  character  and  posses.sed  many  noble 
Hualities.  With  the  Wheaton  College  Church 
she  held  membership.  Her  death  occurred  in 
Wheaton,  February  26,  1891,  at  the  age  of  fifty- 
three  years,  and  was  deeply  lamented.  To  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Grant  were  born  six  children:  Caroline 
A.,  wife  of  E.  O.  Kull,  of  Lake  Geneva,  Wis.; 
Albert  S..  a  contractor  and  builder  of  Wheaton: 
Alice  ¥...  \\-ife  of  D.  M.  Gurnea,  of  Wheaton,  by 
whom  she  has  one  child.  Jessie  I.:  Alfreds.,  a 
contractor  and  builder  of  St.  Charles,  111. ;  Don, 
who  died  in  infancy:  and  David  A.,  a  student  of 
Wheaton  College. 

Mr.  Grant  is  a  member  of  Wheaton  College 
Church.  He  is  a  man  of  broad  mind  and  is  a  lil>- 
eral  thinker.  He  has  never  sought  official  pre- 
ferment, though  often  solicited  by  his  friends  to 
accept  office.  In  early  life  he  was  an  AlK)litionist 
and  ca.st  his  first  Presidential  vote  for  Fremont. 
He  then  affiliated  with  the  Republican  party  until 
the  Prohibition  party  was  formed,  when  he  joined 
its  ranks.      He  a)nies  of  an    honore<l  familv  that 


376 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


has  won  prominence,  especially  in  the  defense  of 
the  country,  and  through  no  act  of  his  has  its  fair 
name  ever  been  sullied. 


-SI- 


+^ 


[^ 


&- 


EQNRAI)  HAMMERSCHMIDT  resides  in 
Naperville.  The  ancestors  of  the  family 
were  among  the  most  progressive  as  well  as 
intelligent  element  in  Germany.  The  majority 
represented  the  clergy  of  the  Lutheran  denomina- 
tion, and  were  noted  as  men  of  great  learning  and 
force  of  character,  as  well  as  for  the  love  they  bore 
their  fellow-men.  They  were  universally  es- 
teemed for  their  many  excellent  qualities  of  head 
and  heart,  and  they  left  strong  minds  and  vigor- 
ous con.stitutions  as  a  rich  legacy  to  their  descend- 
ants, a  number  of  whom  we  find  in  DuPage 
Count>  . 

The  first  progenitor  of  the  famil\-  of  whom   we 
have  anv  knowledge  was  Joh.  Hanunerschmidt.  a 
teacher  and  Town  Secretary   in  I'lettenberg,  Ger- 
manv,  wholivedin  1620.    His  .son,  Casper,  born  in 
1632,  was  a  vicar  and  Lutheran  mini.ster  in  Plet- 
tenberg.   His  son,  Joh.  Ruediger,  was  an  attorne\ 
at-law    at    Hannn.       His    son,    Ruediger    Peter 
Joachim,  was  also  an  attorney   at   Hamm.     The 
latter's  son.  Rev.    George   Elbert,  born   in  1767, 
the  grandfather  of  our  subject,  was  a  pastor  of 
the  Lutheran  Church  in  Schwelm.     His  son.  Rev. 
Fred   William    ^L^ximillian,    was    born    May    9, 
1797,  in  Schwelm,  became  pastor  of  Altena.  and 
later  was  Constorial  Judge  at  Muen.ster,  where  he 
died  September  21,  1867.     He  married  Carolina 
Schwarz,  a  native  of  Altena,    who   was   born    in 
1802,  and  died  in  I S60.       Roth    parents  were  peo- 
ple of  .strong  character,  and  marked  individuality. 
They  lived  u.seful  lives,  and  left  an   honored   rec- 
ord like  many  of  their  ancestors.      Their  children 
were  Theodore,  Adolph,  Herman,  Bernhard,  Con- 
rad and  Maria.     The  eldest  son  was  a  minister  of 
the   Lutheran    Church,    and    died    in    Germany. 
Adolph  and  Herman  are  intelligent  farmers  near 
Naperville.  Bernard  is  a  doctor  living  in  Elberfeld, 
Germany:   and  Maria  married  Henr\-  Schmithals, 
of  Bouu,  on  the  Rhine,  Germany. 


Conrad  Hammerschniidt  received  his  literarj- 
education  in  the  .schools  of  Muenster  and  Gueter- 
sloh.  At  the  age  of  eighteen  years,  he  came  to 
the  United  States.  After  being  a  tiller  of  the  soil 
for  more  than  fifteen  years,  he  began  to  travel  in 
the  interest  of  the  (iniiiaiiia,  of  Milwaukee.  In 
1885  he  accepted  a  position  of  business  manager 
of  the  PcKtsc/w  II 'a /if.  of  Chicago,  a  bi-weekly, 
which  jKisitioii  he  has  held  ever  since. 

Mr.  Hanunerschmidt  was  married  in  Germany 
to  Miss  Emelia  Dollinger,  who  died  in  Naper- 
ville, June  7,  iSSo.  She  was  an  estimable  lady, 
a  devoted  wife  and  faithful  mother.  Slie  posses.sed 
many  excellent  qualities,  and  her  untimely  and 
earlv  demise  was  mourned  by  all  who  had  known 
her.  Six  children  bless  her  memory,  namely: 
Emelia,  Frank,  Otilia,  Albert.  Rheinhard  and 
Ida.  Mr.  Hanunerschmidt  was  married  a  second 
time,  the  lady  of  his  choice  being  Maria  Gau- 
weiler,  who  is  the  mother  of  his  two  youngest 
children.  Otto  and  Louisa. 


_^]. 


^H-^ 


'[=■ 


HON.  JOHN  WATSON  GARY  has  a  reputa- 
tion as  a  prominent  lawyer  which  extends 
far  beyond  the  limits  of  DuPage  County,  and 
even  of  Illinois.  He  now  resides  in  Hinsdale 
and  is  one  of  its  most  highly -esteemed  citizens. 
He  was  born  in  Shoreham,  \'t.,  February  11, 
1 717,  and  is  a  son  of  Asa  and  Anna  (Sanford) 
Carv.  His  parents  were  natives  of  Connecticut, 
but  were  married  in  Vermont,  and  lived  in  Shore- 
ham  until  I  S3 1,  when  they  removed  to  Sterling, 
Cayuga  County,  N.  Y.,  where  they  lived  for 
twenty  years.  They  then  went  to  Racine,  Wis., 
following  their  children, who  were  among  the  first 
settlers  of  that  place,  two  of  their  sons  having 
there  located  in  1835.  Mr.  Cary  was  a  farmer  by 
occupation.  He  and  his  wife  belonged  to  the 
Congregational  Church  in  early  life,  but  after- 
wards became  members  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church.  He  held  various  political  offices  and 
was  a  prominent  and  influential  citizen. 

The  paternal  grandfather,  Nathaniel  Cary,  was 
born    in    Mansfield,    Conn.,  and    was   descended 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


377 


from  John  Can  .  who  about  1S30  emigrated  from 
Bristol.  England,  to  America,  locating  at  Bridge- 
water,  near  Plymouth.     He  wa.s  one  of  the  par- 
ties named  as  beneficiaries  in  the  deed  given  by 
the  Government   to   Miles   Standish  and  others, 
conveying  to  them   a  .strip  of  land  seven   miles 
long  and  one  mile  wide,  upon  which   some  of  his 
descendants  are  still  living.     His  son  Joseph  set- 
tled   in    Norwich.    Conn.,  and    the    latter' s   son, 
Jabez.  located  in  Mansfield.     He  was  the  father 
of  Nathaniel,  and  John  Watson  of  this  sketch  is 
of  the  sixth  generation   in  direct  descent.     The 
grandfather  lived  to  the  age  of  more  than  eighty 
vears.  was  three  times  marrietl.  and  had  a  family 
of  fifteen  children.     The  maternal  grandfather  of 
oar  subject,  Joseph  Sanford.   spent  much  of  his 
life  in  Old  Milford.  Conn.,  and  in   17S3  removed 
to  Orwell.   \'t..  where    he    reared    his   family    of 
eleven  children.     He  purcha.sed  a  fann  at  the  foot 
of  Mt.    Independence,    the   point   to   which  the 
American  army  retreated    when    driven   out  of 
Ft.  Ticonderoga  by  Hurgoyne.     Mrs.  Gary  often 
spoke  of  picking  up  bullets   which  had  lain  on 
that  battlefield  from  the  time  of  the  Revolutionan, 
struggle. 

Mr.  Can.  whose  name  heads  this  sketch  spent 
the  first  fourteen  years  of  his  life  in  Shoreham. 
and  then  accompanied  his  parents  to  Sterling. 
N.  Y..  where  he  worked  in  a  .store.  After  at- 
tending different  schools  and  academies  he  entered 
I'nion  College,  in  iS^.S,  and  was  graduated  four 
vears  later.  He  made  his  wa>  through  college 
bv  his  own  exertions,  earning  in  vacations  and 
leisure  hours  the  funds  with  which  to  pay  his  tu- 
ition. During  this  time  he  read  law  with  vari- 
ous prominent  lawyers,  and  in  1 844  was  admitted 
to  the  Bar  in  Albany.  N.  V..  by  the  .Supreme 
Court,  and  the  next  day  was  admitted  as  Solicitor 
in  Chancer>-  at  Saratoga.  In  Februarx-  of  that 
year,  he  entered  upon  practice  at  Red  Creek, 
N.  Y..  and  in  1850  he  removed  westward  to 
Racine,  Wis.,  where  he  spent  the  succeeding  nine 
vears  of  his  life.  In  1859.  he  went  to  Milwaukee, 
and  there  formed  a  partnership  with  Wallace 
Pratt.  Later  A.  L.  Can,-  and  J.  P.  Cottrill  were 
his  partners,  and  subsequently  he  was  a.s.sociated 
with  his  son.  Melbert  B.  Car>  .     After  ihirty-one 


years  spent  in  Milwaukee,  he  went  to  Chicago,  in 
1890,  and  in  the  fall  of  that  year  moved  to  Hins- 
dale, where  he  has  since  resided. 

Since  1S59,  Mr.  Cary  has  l)eeii  identified  with 
railroad  interests,  and  since  the  organization  of 
the  Chicago,  Milwaukee  &  St.  Paul  Railroad  in 
1S6.;  he  has  been  its  attorney.  His  abilities,  lx)th 
natural  and  acquired,  have  placed  him  in  the 
front  rank  among  his  professional  brethren,  and 
in  all  important  cases  in  this  ct>mmunity  he  has 
been  found  either  on  one  side  or  the  other.  Dur- 
ing one  ses-sion  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the 
United  States,  he  argued  fourteen  ra.ses  against 
such  able  coun.sel  as  Caleb  Cushing.  Matt  Car- 
penter and  Henn-  A.  Cram.  He  was  the  coun.sel 
in  the  Supreme  Court,  in  the  case  of  the  com- 
pany :.f.  the  State  of  Minnesota,  in  which  the 
famous  Munn  decision  was  in  part  reversed.  In 
politics,  Judge  Car>-  takes  quite  an  active  interest, 
and  is  a  stalwart  advocate  of  the  Democracy,  but 
has  never  been  an  office-seeker,  in  fact  he  has 
.steadily  refused  official  positions  that  have  l)een 
tendered  him.  yet  he  was  Postmaster  at  Red 
Creek  under  President  Polk,  sened  as  State  Sen- 
ator from  Racine,  was  Mayor  of  that  city,  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Council  of  Milwaukee,  and  a  member 
of  the  Legislature  from  Milwaukee. 

On  the  loth  of  June.  1844..  Judge  Cary  married 
Miss  Eliza  Viles.  who  died  just  ten  months  and 
two  days  later,  leaving  an  infant  daughter.  Eliza 
Viles.  who  is  now  the  wife  of  Sherbmirn  Sanborn, 
General  Sui)erintendent  of  the  Chicago  &  North- 
western Railroad  Company.  They  have  two 
daughters,  Mabel  and  Jessie.  On  the  6th  of 
June.  1S47.  Mr.  Car>  wedded  Isaliel.  daughter 
of  Peter  and  Anna  (Van  Kitten)  BrinkerhofT. 
Thev  had  seven  children,  five  .sons  and  two 
daughters;  Frances,  widow  of  Charles  I).  Ken- 
drick.  who  died  in  1890:  Mellx-rt  B.,  of  New 
York,  who  married  Julia  Metcalf  and  has  three 
children.  Madeline.  Isal)el  Frances  and  Mellnrrt 
B. :  Fretl  A.,  who  is  Vice-President  and  Treas- 
urer of  the  .\.  H.  .\ndrews  Company,  of  Chicago, 
and  married  IClsie  Ferguson,  by  whom  he  has  a 
daughter,  Florence;  John  W..  who  married  Mae 
Stone,  and  resides  in  New  York:  George  P.  and 
Paul  v..  at  home;  and  Isabel,  now  deceased. 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


Judge  Cary  and  his  wife  are  members  of  the 
Presbyterian  Church  of  Hinsdale.  They  have  a 
pleasant  home  in  this  place  and  are  prominent 
members  of  society  who  occup\-  enviable  positions 
in  social  circles.  Mr.  Cary  has  devoted  his  en- 
tire life  to  his  profession  and  has  won  a  place  at 
the  Bar  of  which  he  may  be  justly  proud.  Merit 
has  gained  him  high  distinction,  and  his  ability 
has  made  his  career  a  successful  one.  Endowed 
b>-  nature  with  a  keen  and  logical  mind,  he  is  a 
deep  thinker,  a  clear  reasouer,  and  an  effecti\-e 
speaker. 


c=i 


^+^ 


(S_ 


_3 


I      OUIS  BUCHANAN    HA(iEMAN,    young- 
I C    est  son  of  Dr.    F.    C.    Hageman    (.see  biog- 
[^  raphy  elsewhere  in  this  book ) ,  was  born  in 
Wheaton,  111.,  May    10,  1857.      He  attended   the 
public  .schools  of  his  native  town   and  Chicago, 
and  took  a  course  at   Bryant  &  vStratton's  Busi- 
ness College  in  the  latter  city.      At  the  age  of 
twenty  years  he  entered  the  drug  .store  of  L.  L. 
Hiatt,  of  Wheaton,  and  continued   in  that   em 
ployment  ten  years,  becoming  a  skilled  pharma- 
cist and  druggi.st.      At  the  end  of  this  time  he  en- 
gaged in  business  in  the  same  line,  purchasing  a 
.store  in  Wheaton,  which  he  conducted  until  his 
untimely  death.    While  nursing  his  wife  through 
a  severe  attack  of  pneumonia,  he  became  weak- 
ened bv  loss  of  sleep  and  anxiety,  and  fell  a  vic- 
tim  to   an   attack  of  peritonitis,    dying  very  sud- 
denh-  on  the  Sth  of  February,  1892,  having  nearly 
completed  his   thirty-fifth  year.     Mr.    Hageman 
was  a  heavy  man,  weighing  nearly  two  hundred 
pounds,  and  a  fall  in  his  .store,  by  which  he  .struck 
his  side  on  a   chairback,  so  affected  his  liver  that 
he  could  not  resist  the  disease  that  seized  upon  it. 
In  July,  1891,  he  completed  a  beautiful  home  on 
Bird  Street,  at  the  corner  of  Washington  Avenue, 
where  his  widow  and  two  daughters  now  reside. 
He  was  married  May  4,  1882,  to  Miss  Josephine, 
daughter  of  Thomas  W.  and  Melissa  F.  (Wright) 
Holmes.      Mr.  and  Mrs.  Holmes  were  natives  of 
New  York  and  Vermont,  respectively,  and  came 
early  to  DuPage  County,  locating  first   at  Lisle, 


but  soon  after  removing  to  Dauby  (now  Glen 
Ellyn),  where  they  settled  on  a  farm,  where  Mrs. 
Hageman  was  born,  and  where  they  died  when 
she  was  but  a  small  child.  Mrs.  Hageman' s  chil- 
dren are  named  Marguerite,  Melissa  and  Hazel 
Holmes. 

Mr.  Hageman  was  a  member  of  the  Modern 
Woodmen  of  America,  and  was  quite  as  enthusi- 
astic in  his  loyalty  to  the  Republican  party  as  was 
his  father  to  the  Democratic  party.  He  entertained 
liberal  religious  views,  and  was  active  in  sustain- 
ing the  progressive  thought  of  the  conmiunity. 
He  .served  two  terms  as  Collector  of  the  town  of 
Milton  and  cit>-  of  Wheaton,  and  was  always 
-readv  to  encourage  any  enterpri.se  calculated  to 
enhance  the  pro.sperity  of  his  home,  city  and 
count\-.  He  was  a  good  busine.ss  man,  a  plea.sant 
companion,  and  deservedly  popular  with  his  fel- 
lows. 


-SI. 


^^^\ 


EllRISTIAN  HLIEVEKNICHT,  who  is  en- 
■^aged  in  general  merchandising  in  Ehnhur.st, 
i^  a  native  of  German\-.  He  was  born  in 
Goshetzogthum.  Mechlenberg-.Schwerin,  on  the 
i8th  of  April,  iS;,7,  and  spent  the  days  of  his 
boyhood  and  youth  in  the  Fatherland,  where  he 
continued  to  reside  until  i860,  when,  at  the  age 
of  twenty-three  years,  he  came  to  America.  He 
had  heard  of  the  advantages  and  privileges  af- 
forded in  the  New  World,  and,  bidding  good-b\e 
to  friends  and  countr\-,  he  cros.sed  the  briny  deep 
to  try  his  fortune  in  America.  He  had  acquired 
a  good  common-school  education,  and  had  been 
reared  as  a  farmer.  On  landing,  he  came  at  once 
to  Illinois,  locating  in  DuPage  County,  and  for 
one  year  worked  as  a  farm  hand  by  the  month  for 
Lawrence  Piatt.  It  was  in  1884  that  he  pur- 
chased a  stock  of  goods,  and  opened  a  general 
store,  which  he  still  continues  to  carry  on. 

On  the  ist  of  December,  1863,  Mr.  Blievernicht 
was  married,  the  lady  of  his  choice  being  Miss 
Magdelena  Menke,  a  daughter  of  Wilhelm  and 
Maria  (Heuer)  Menke,  natives  of  Hanover. 
Germany.  Eight  children  were  born  to  this 
worthy   couple,    four  sons  and    four    daughters  : 


Daniel  Austin. 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


381 


August,  who  is  now  deceased:  Herman,  who 
married  Miss  Otelda  Hescht.  and  resides  in  Elm- 
hurst  with  his  wife  and  daughter  Sylvia:  Otto, 
who  niarrie<l  Miss  MoUie  Bourke.  by  whom  he 
has  t\vo  children.  Ellis  and  Christian:  Eddie,  who 
is  also  deceased:  Ida.  who  has  passed  away;  Othe- 
Ua.  who  is  the  next  younger:  Emelia.  wife  of 
Richard  Fletcher:  and  Emma,  the  youngest  of  the 
family,  who  is  also  deceased. 

In  his  political  affilialions,  Mr.  Blieveniicht  is 
a  Democrat,  and  for  a  period  of  nine  months  he 
served  as  Postmaster.  He  was  elected  as  a  mem- 
ber of  the  \'illage  Board  of  Tru.stees.  and  so  well 
did  he  fill  the  office  that  he  was  twice  re-elected. 
ser\-ing  in  all  for  three  years  with  credit  to  him 
self  and  satisfaction  to  his  constituents.  Mr. 
Bhevemicht  carries  a  large  line  of  general  mer- 
chandise, his  store  being  complete  in  all  its  ap- 
pointments, and  from  the  beginning  his  trade  has 
constantly  increased  until  it  has  now  assumed 
extensive  proportions.  He  is  a  worthy  German 
citizen,  and  it  is  with  pleasure  that  we  present 
this  record  of  his  life  to  our  readers. 


i^i^l 


0AXIEL  AUSTIN  was  one  of  the  oldest  set- 
tlers of  Downer" s  Grove  and  one  of  its  promi- 
nent citizens.  He  was  bom  March  1 1 .  1832. 
in  Columbus,  X.  V..  unto  Burgess  and  Lucinda 
(Jenks)  Austin,  and  was  the  eldest  of  their  four 
children.  Thomas  died  in  this  township  in  1892. 
He  had  a  family  of  five  children,  all  of  whom  are 
deceased.  Sarah,  deceased,  was  the  wife  of  John  J. 
Gager,  a  resident  of  Fayette  County.  Iowa:  Delia 
was  married,  and  died  leaving  an  infant  .son.  Del- 
bert.  who  was  adopted  by  our  subject,  and  still 
makes  his  home  with  Mrs.  Austin  in  Downers 
Grove. 

The  father  of  this  family  was  bom  in  Hancock 
County.  Mass.,  in  1807,  and  died  in  Downer's 
Grove,  June  23.  1888.  He  was  married  in  Ma.ssa- 
chu.setts  in  1830.  and  by  team  removed  to  New 
York,  where  he  remained  until  1844,  when  he 
emigrated  with  his  family  to  DuPage  County, 
and  entered  land  from  the  Government.     He  was 


quite  successfiil  in  his  dealings,  and  at  his  death 
left  a  large  estate.  He  was  one  of  the  influential 
citizens  of  the  community  and  was  numbered 
among  the  honored  pioneers.  His  widow,  who 
was  bora  in  Hancock  County,  Ma.ss.,  February  , 
3.  1809.  is  still  living  on  the  old  homestead.  She 
is  a  daughter  of  Thomas  and  Rachel  ( Ellis ) 
Jenks,  both  natives  of  Massachusetts,  the  former 
born  July  27.  1777.  and  the  latter  Febraary  14. 
1788. 

Daniel  Austin,  whose  name  heads  this  record, 
was  a  lad  of  onl\-  tweh'e  sununers  when  he  came 
with  his  parents  to  this  county.  He  remained 
upon  the  home  farm  until  he  had  attained  his  ma- 
jority, aiding  in  the  labors  of  the  field  during  the 
sununer  months,  and  attending  the  district  schools 
through  the  winter  season.  He  then  left  home 
and  went  to  Wheaton,  111.,  where  he  spent  one 
vear.  after  which  he  and  his  father  purchased  the 
old  homestead  in  Downer's  Grove  and  together 
engaged  in  fanning.  On  the  iith  of  March. 
1S72,  he  was  united  in  marriage  with  Mrs.  Jos- 
ephine H.  Britton.  who  was  bom  November  19, 
1846.  and  is  a  daughter  of  Matthew  and  Emeline 
1  Converse )  Cozzens. 

Mrs.  Austin  was  first  married  in  Chicago  to 
Charles  Nelson,  who  died  leaving  two  children, 
Charles  and  Frederick .  The  former  die<i  in  infancy : 
the  latter  is  now  a  highly  educated  young  man, 
and  is  a  partner  in  a  wholesale  coal  business  of 
Chicago.  In  July,  1892,  he  married  Grace  C. 
Wheeler,  of  Downer's  Grove.  After  the  death  of 
her  first  husband.  Mrs.  Au.stin  married  Joseph 
Britton.  who  died  in  Chicago,  leaving  a  daugh- 
ter. Matelle  Loui.se.  now  the  wife  of  William 
Stewart,  of  this  place.  Mr.  Cozzens,  father  of 
Mrs.  Austin,  was  a  native  of  Cleveland,  Ohio, 
and  there  engaged  in  the  hardware  business.  On 
the  13th  of  April.  1834,  he  marrietl  Miss  Emeline 
C.  Converse,  who  was  born  in  Brookfield,  Orange 
County,  Vt..  Febman,-  13,  18 15.  He  had  lieen 
previously  married,  and  by  his  first  wife  had  a 
daughter,  who  became  the  wife  of  Thomas  Sherry, 
a  business  man  of  Chicago,  but  both  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Sherry  are  now  deceased.  They  had  two 
children:  Ira.  who  has  also  passed  away:  and 
Minnie    L.,    wile  of  C.    F.   Johnston,  of  Duluth, 


19 


382 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


Minn.  Mrs.  Austin's  father  died  when  she  was 
quite  a  small  girl,  but  her  mother  is  now  living 
in  Downer's  Gro\-e,  at  the  age  of  eighty  years. 

Our  subject  and  his  wife  began  their  domestic 
life  in  Downer's  Grove,  where  they  remained  for 
two  years.  They  afterward  lived  for  a  short  time 
upon  a  farm,  and  then  returned  to  this  place,  where 
Mr.  Austin  lived  a  retired  life  until  his  death, 
which  occurred  at  his  home  August  6,  1892.  He 
was  laid  to  rest  in  the  old  family  burying-ground  on 
the  Austin  homestead.  He  was  a  man  of  sterling 
worth  and  strict  integrity,  who  led  a  quiet,  unas- 
suming and  upright  life,  and  won  the  confidence 
and  regard  of  all  with  whom  he  was  brought  in 
contact.  He  was  familiar  with  the  history  of  this 
county  from  an  early  da\-,  and  ever  bore  liis  part 
iir  the  work  of  public  advancement.  Mrs.  Austin 
is  a  most  estimal)le  lady  and  a  member  of  the 
Methodist  Church.  She  is  .still  living  at  the  old 
home  with  her  husband's  mother,  for  whom  she 
tenderlv  cares. 


_=l 


l^+^[ 


"SD 


EHARLES  BENNETT  SMITH,  only  son  of 
William  G.  Smith,  whose  biography  will  be 
found  elsewhere  in  this  book,  is  one  of  the 
most  successful  business  men  of  Wheaton .  He  was 
born  in  Whitehall,  N.  Y.,  April  6,  1853,  and 
was  brought  to  Illinois  when  an  infant.  He  at- 
tended the  public  schools  at  W'arreuville  and 
Wheaton,  and  was  a  student  of  Wheaton  College 
two  years.  At  the  age  of  seventeen,  he  began 
learning  the  railroad  station  business  at  Elmhunst, 
and  soon  found  employment  in  the  station  at 
Wheaton,  becoming  a  skillful  telegraph  oper- 
ator. In  the  spring  of  1872,  he  was  made  agent 
for  the  Chicago  &  Northwestern  Railway  and  the 
American  Express  Company  at  Wcstside,  Craw- 
ford County,  Iowa,  and  filled  that  position  eight 
years.  He  then  took  charge  of  the  station  at 
Carroll,  an  important  division  point  on  the  North- 
western S5'stem,  for  three  years.  At  the  end  of 
that  time,  at  his  request,  he  was  transferred  to 
the   charge   of  Wheaton   Station,    being    at   the 


time  the  oldest  agent  in  point  of  service  on  the 
Northwestern  line  west  of  Boone.  Mr.  Smith 
was  determined  to  improve  his  opportunities,  and 
soon  after  locating  at  Wheaton,  he  opened  a  real- 
estate  and  insurance  office,  in  which  he  transacted 
a  large  amount  of  business.  He  is  one  of  those 
who  are  responsible  for  the  incorporation  of  the 
city , and  for  the  modern  improvements  which  make 
it  a  desirable  place  of  residence.  He  served  four 
years  as  Cit\'  Clerk,  but  has  never  been  a  .seeker 
after  political  preferment.  He  is  keenly  alive  to 
business  opportunities,  and  is  quite  content  to  let 
others  handle  the  reins  of  government.  He  is  a 
stockholder  in  the  compan\-  which  supplies  the 
city  with  electric  light,  and  during  the  Columbian 
Exposition  was  \'ice- President  of  the  Epworth 
Hotel  Restaurant  Company,  an  organization  which 
built  and  operated  a  successful  hotel  near  the  P'air 
grounds. 

In  1.S90,  Mr.  Smith  was  a])p(>inted  Assi.stant 
Claim  Agent  of  the  Chicago  iV  Northwestern 
Railway  Company,  a  position  that  lie  lias  accept- 
ably filled  since.  With  mi  influence  to  pusli  him, 
save  his  own  energy  and  ability,  he  has  attained 
a  respon.sible  position  with  an  extensive  corpora- 
tion at  an  age  when  many  are  still  apprentices. 
Mr.  Smith  is  an  active  and  enthu.sia.stic  Republi- 
can, and  carries  an  influence  in  local  political  af- 
fairs. He  is  a  member  of  the  Methodist  Church, 
and  of  .several  fraternal  orders. 

On  the  30th  of  December,  1875,  Mr.  Smith 
was  married  to  his  childhood's  playmate  and 
schoolmate,  Laura  Elizabeth,  youngest  daugh- 
ter of  Jude  P.  Gary,  a  pioneer  of  DuPage  County. 
(See  biography  of  Jude  P.  Gary.)  Mrs.  Smith 
was  born  in  Winfield  Township,  and  is  a  valu- 
able member  of  Wheaton  society.  To  the  aged 
parents  of  Mr.  Smith  she  is  like  one  born  to 
them,  and  in  every  relation  of  life  is  the  worthy 
helpmate  of  a  popular  citizen.  Mrs.  Smith  has 
been  throughout  her  adult  life  one  of  the  most 
faithful  and  efficient  members  of  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church,  and  has  been  for  many  years 
the  leading  soprano  singer  in  the  choir  of  the 
Wheaton  Church.  Two  children  have  been  given 
to  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Smith,  nameh-:  Laura  Eoleen 
and  Winifred  Alice. 


L.  C.  Ruth. 


PORTRAIT  AND  lilOGRAPHICAL    RECORD. 


383 


In  1892,  Mr.  Smith  built  the  fine  residence 
which  he  occupies  at  the  southwest  a)rner  of 
West  Street  and  Washington  Avenue.  It  is  the 
.seat  of  quiet  elegance  and  refined  hospitality. 


-=]. 


^+^ 


(=^ 


I  IMS  C.  RUTH,  of  Hinsdale,  is  a  prominent 
I C  member  of  the  DuPage  County  Bar.  and 
I  J  well  deser\es  representation  in  this  volume. 
He  has  the  honor  of  being  a  native  of  Illinois,  for 
he  was  boni  at  Long  Grove.  Lake  County,  on 
the  iSth  of  December.  1854.  His  parents  were 
Irwin  and  Leah  1  Brown  1  Ruth,  natives  of  Penn- 
sylvania. The  family  is  of  En.iclish  origin,  and 
was  founded  in  America  by  George  E.  Ruth,  the 
grandfather  of  our  subject,  who  left  England,  his 
native  land,  and  emigrated  to  America,  locating 
in  Northumberland  County.  Pa.  The  year  1836 
witne-s.sed  his  arrival  in  Illinois.  He  settled  near 
Waukegan.  then  called  Little  Fort,  where  he  died 
when  past  the  age  of  sixty  years.  He  reared  a 
family  of  eight  children.  The  maternal  grand 
father,  John  Brown,  was  born  in  the  Keystone 
State,  and  was  for  some  \ears  engaged  in  mer- 
chandising in  Philadelphia.  He  came  to  the 
West  in  1838,  settling  in  Cedar\-ille.  111.,  where 
he  died  at  the  age  of  eighty-one  years. 

Mr.  Ruth  whose  name  heads  this  record  spent 
his  early  boyhood  upon  the  home  farm,  aiding  in 
the  labors  of  the  field  through  the  summer  months, 
while  in  the  winter  season  he  attended  the  district 
.school  and  acquired  the  rudiments  of  his  educa- 
tion. Later,  he  was  a  student  in  the  High  School, 
and  in  the  Iowa  State  College,  of  Ames,  Iowa. 
On  the  completion  of  his  literan,-  education,  he  en- 
tered Br>ant  &  Stratton's  Business  College  of 
Chicago,  from  which  he  was  graduated  in  1873. 
His  time  was  then  devoted  to  business  interests 
for  several  years,  after  which  he  determined  to 
enter  upon  a  profes-sional  career,  and  began  the 
study  of  law  in  the  Union  College  of  Law  in  Chi- 
cago. Two  years  later  he  was  admittetl  to  the 
Bar.  During  several  succeeding  years,  he  was 
engage  1  in  delivering  lectures  on  commercial  law 


and  the  law  of  real  property  in  Bryant  &  Strat- 
ton's College,  in  which  he  had  formerly  been  a 
.student. 

On  the  iSth  of  .\ugu.st.  i.s.So,  Mr.  Ruth  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Ella  F.  Reardon. 
Three  children  have  beeii  boni  of  their  union: 
Ir\vin,  Che.ster  and  Linus  C.  The  parents  are 
members  of  the  Hinsdale  I'nity  Church,  and  con- 
tribute liberally  to  its  support.  They  occupy  an 
enviable  {xjsition  in  social  circles,  and  have  won 
the  high  regard  of  all  who  know  them. 

In  188 1  Mr.  Ruth  came  to  Hinsdale,  and  has 
since  engaged  in  the  practice  of  his  profe.s,sion  with 
excellent  success.  He  has  been  honored  with  a 
number  of  official  positions,  having  ser\-ed  as  a 
member  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  and  the  Board  of 
Health,  and  for  three  years  has  Ijeen  \"illage  At- 
toniey.  He  discharges  his  duties  with  a  prompt- 
ness and  fidelity  that  have  won. him  high  commen- 
dation, and  his  public  and  private  life  are  alike 
above  reproach.  In  politics,  he  is  a  supporter  of 
the  Republican  party.  He  owns  some  good  prop- 
erty in  Hin.sdale,  including  his  plea.sant  residence, 
and  was  one  of  the  organizers  of  the  Hinsdale 
Building  and  Loan  Association,  of  which  he  has 
served  as  attorney  from  the  .start.  He  is  ever 
found  in  the  front  rank  of  any  enterprise  calcu- 
lated to  prove  of  public  benefit,  and  is  alive  to  the 
best  interests  of  this  community  and  its  welfare. 
Public-spirited  and  progressive,  he  is  a  valued 
citizen  and  a  man  of  sterling  worth. 


c=\ 


^H^ 


[=_ 


CJTILLM.W  HILL  was  born  on  the  9th  of 
?\  March,  1809,  in  Calais,  Me.,  and  in  that  com- 
yy  munity  was  reared  to  manhood.  While  in 
the  Pine  Tree  State,  he  engaged  in  lumbering. 
After  arriving  at  man's  estate,  he  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Mi.ss  Eliza  Hopps,  who  was  torn 
on  the  .seashore  in  New  Brunswick,  on  the 
Canadian  side  of  the  St.  Croix  River,  May  17, 
1819.  Her  father,  John  Hopps.  was  born  in  the 
province  of  New  Bnuiswick  and  was  of  Gennan 
descent.  He  married  Martha  Bradford,  one  of 
the  descendants  of  Gov.    Bradford,  who  came  to 


384 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


this  countr}'  in  the  "Mayflower."  They  became 
the  parents  of  ten  children  who  grew  to  manhood 
and  womanhood,  Mrs.  Hill  being  the  .sixth  in  or- 
der of  birth.  In  the  place  of  her  nativity  she 
was  reared. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hill  were  married  in  Maine,  but 
in  1845  they  bade  adieu  to  New  England,  and 
emigrated  we.stward  to  DuPage  County,  111.  Mr. 
Hill  purchased  the  farm  on  which  his  widow  now 
resides,  and  they  moved  into  a  little  log  house, 
which  continued  to  be  their  home  for  seven  years. 
There  our  subject  carried  on  general  farming  and 
stock-raising,  and  drove  hogs  to  Chicago  and 
Streator.  He  was  a  man  who  entered  upon 
his  business  career  empty-handed.  He  had  only 
$10  when  he  began  building  his  house.  The  en- 
terprise and  industry  which  were  numbered 
among  his  chief  characteristics  stood  him  instead 
of  capital,  and  as  the  years  pa.ssed  brought  him  a 
comfortable  competence. 

Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hill  were  born  nine  chil- 
dren: Augustus  William,  now  living  in  Aurora; 
George  M.  and  Thomas  J.,  who  are  residents  ot 
the  same  city;  Randolph,  who  died  at  the  age  ot 
four  months;  May,  deceased;  Milton  vS.,  who 
makes  his  home  in  Naper\-ille;  Ernest  O.,  who  is 
living  in  Naperville  Township;  Arthur  W.,  who 
carries  on  the  home  farm;  and  Minnie  B.,  at 
home. 

In  his  early  life,  Mr.  Hill  was  a  supporter  of 
the  Democracy,  but  after  the  Republican  party 
sprang  into  exi.stence  he  joined  its  ranks  and  con- 
tinued to  support  its  men  and  measures  through- 
out the  remainder  of  his  days.  He  was  a  chari- 
table and  benevolent  man,  and  the  poor  and  needy 
found  in  him  a  trusted  friend,  who  gave  them  en- 
couragement and  the  more  sub.stantial  aid  of  lib- 
eral donations.  He  also  gave  freely  to  churches 
and  those  enterprises  which  he  believed  would 
prove  of  public  benefit.  His  life  was  an  honor- 
able and  upright  one  and  gained  him  the  high  re- 
gard of  all.  He  passed  away  in  1886,  and  at  his 
death  left  to  his  family  a  fine  farm  of  three  hun- 
dred and  eighty  acres  of  arable  land.  Since  her 
husband's  death,  Mrs.  Hill  has  had  entire  charge 
of  this,  and  in  the  management  she  displays  the 
traits  of  a  good  business  woman.     She  possesses 


excellent  executive  ability  and  in  the  control  of 
affairs  she  has  met  with  success.  Mrs.  Hill  also 
possesses  those  characteristics  which  make  her  a 
favorite  in  social  circles,  and  throughout  DuPage 
County  she  has  many  warm  friends. 


!^^^^l 


(^~ 


(]OHN  ANTON  DOLLINGER,'  a  traveling 
I  .salesman  residing  at  Wheaton,  is  numbered 
C2/  among  the  early  residents  of  DuPage  County, 
and  has  made  his  own  way  in  the  world  since  he 
was  ten  years  of  age.  He  was  born  in  Baden, 
Germany,  on  the  24th  of  December,  1845,  and  is 
the  eldest  child  of  Christopher  Dollinger,  a  native 
of  the  .same  place.  His  mother  died  when  he  was 
an  infant,  and  when  he  had  arrived  at  the  age  of 
twelve  years  his  father  brought  the  four  children 
to  America.  The  second  child,  Adelaide,  Mrs. 
George  Rieser,  resides  in  Naperville  Township, 
DuPage  County,  Christopher,  Jr.,  is  a  resident 
of  Colorado  Springs,  Colo. ;  and  Margaret,  Mrs. 
Luther,  dwells  in  Fredericksburg,  Neb.  Chris- 
topher Dollinger  engaged  in  farming  in  Naper- 
ville Township,  where  he  died  in  1873,  aged 
about  sixty  years. 

From  the  time  of  his  arrival  in  America,  our 
subject  has  been  independent  of  parental  aid  in 
supporting  or  educating  himself.  He  took  em- 
pIo\nient  in  a  hotel  and  meat-market  kept  by  his 
maternal  uncle,  Nicholas  Graff,  at  Danby,  now 
Glen  Ell>ii,  attending  .school  a  portion  of  the 
time,  and  continued  in  this  way  until  the  death 
of  his  uncle.  He  was  afterward  employed  in  a 
general  store  until  1862,  when  he  entered  the 
military  sen-ice,  as  a  member  of  Company  I,  One 
Hundred  and  Fifth  Illinois  Infantry,  in  defense 
of  the  American  I'nion.  This  service  continued 
about  three  years,  and  involved  a  participation  in 
many  of  the  most  decisive  battles  of  the  war.  A 
complete  list  of  the  battles  in  which  the  regiment 
took  part  will  be  found  in  the  biography  of  James 
A.  Congleton,  in  this  work.  Mr.  Dollinger  took 
part  in  all  these,  and  was  mustered  out  at  Wash- 
ington in  June,  1865.  While  in  front  of  Chat- 
tanooga, he  was  excused  from   duty   on   account 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL    RliCURD. 


.^8.' 


of  illness,  but  refused  to  leave  his  comrades,  and 
remained  at  the  front  to  the  finish. 

Since  1.S67  Mr.  DoUinger  has  lH.fn  in  mercan- 
tile business,  and  for  st>me  years  kept  a  grocer>' 
in  Chicago.  For  the  last  seventeen  years  he  has 
traveletl  in  the  capacity  of  salesman,  and  twelve 
of  those  years  have  l)een  pas.sc<l  in  the  ser\-icc  of 
his  present  employers.  Franklin  Mac\'eagh  &  Co. 
In  1S72  he  l>ccame  a  resident  of  Whe-aton.  and 
he  is  the  owner  of  a  handsome  brick  resilience  on 
Wesley  Street,  near  Scott.  He  takes  an  active 
interest  in  the  social  affairs  of  the  town,  l)cing  a 
prominent  member  of  the  Grand  Anny  of  the  Re- 
public and  Knights  of  Pythias,  as  well  as  a  genial, 
magnetic  gentleman,  whose  friends  are  numbered 
by  his  list  of  acquaintances.  He  entertains  lib- 
eral religious  views,  and  is  an  ardent  supporter  of 
tlje  principles  of  the  Republican  party. 

In  1S6S  Mr.  Dollinger  married  Miss  Emagene 
C.  Wicks,  who  was  boni  in  Carthage,  N.  Y.,  and 
bears  in  her  veins  the  blood  of  the  principal  Eu- 
ropean settlers  of  New  England  and  New  York 
— French,  English  and  Dutch.  Her  parents 
were  Stutley  and  Ann  E.  (Strong)  Wicks,  the 
former  being  a  son  of  Stutley  Wicks,  whose  wife's 
maiden  name  was  Treadway.  Three  children 
complete  the  family  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Dollinger, 
namelv;  Anna  W..  Charles  A.  and  William. 


e^^ 


f=3 


I. BUR  HACiAXS.  a  prominent  and  highly 
resjiectetl  citizen  of  Elmhurst.  who  is  widely 
known  throughout  DuPage  County,  was 
born  in  Kingwood.  \'a..  on  the  23dofJuly,  1852, 
and  is  a  son  of  Lucian  A.  and  Lovela  (  Hagans) 
Hagans.  who  were  also  natives  of  the  Old  Do- 
minion. Their  family  numlxrred  only  two  children, 
Wilbur  E..  and  Maria  B.,  who  is  now  decea.sed. 
The  father  fille<l  the  imp<jnant  office  of  Secretan,- 
of  State  in  Virginia  during  the  late  war,  and  after- 
ward became  one  of  the  editors  and  proprietors  of 
the  Wheeling  InUlligencfr,  published  at  Wheel- 
ing, W.  Va.  He  had  come  to  Illinois  in  1856, 
locating  in  Elmhurst,  then  known  as  Cottage 
Grove,  where  he  made  his  home  until  the  break- 


ing out  of  the  war.  wlieii  he  removed  to  We.st 
N'irginia.  continuing  there  tt>  reside  until  1873. 
In  that  year  he  returned  to  Illinois,  and  made  his 
honje  in  Elmhurst  until  his  death,  which  ocxurred 
on  the  6th  of  June.  1890,  at  the  age  of  sixty  five 
years.  He  was  a  man  of  more  than  ordinar\ 
ability,  well  fitted  to  be  a  leader  of  the  j»et)ple. 
and  was  recognized  as  one  of  the  prominent  and 
influential  citizens  of  the  communitv  in  which  he 
made  his  home.  He  was  a  raemlier  of  the  Meth- 
odi.st  Epi.scopal  Church,  and  an  honorable,  up- 
right career  won  him  universal  confidence  and 
esteem.  His  wife,  who  still  .sur\ives  him.  holds 
membership  with  the  same  church. 

The  paternal  grandfather  of  our  subject,  Harri- 
son Hagans,  was  a  native  of  Vermont,  and  fol- 
lowed merchandisitig.  In  1805  he  emigrated  to 
Virginia,  where  he  spent  his  remaining  days, 
passing  away  when  about  sixty-six  years  of  age. 
He  reared  a  family  of  ten  children.  The  ma- 
ternal grandfather.  Elisha  M.  Hagans.  was  also 
boni  in  the  Green  Mountain  State,  and  he,  too, 
was  a  merchant.  In  an  earl>-  day  he  removed  to 
Virginia,  and  in  1856  came  to  Illinois.  He  died 
at  the  residence  of  his  son.  Judge  M.  B.  Hagans, 
in  Cincinnati,  in  1864,  at  the  age  of  sixty-seven. 

W.  E.  Hagans  whose  name  heads  this  record 
was  a  lad  of  only  four  summers  when  his  parents 
first  came  to  this  State.  He  acquired  his  early 
education  in  eastern  Massachusetts,  later  became 
a  student  in  the  Northwesteni  I'liiversity  of  Ev- 
anston.  111.,  and  subsequently  attended  Dickin- 
son College  of  Carlisle.  Pa.  After  his  education 
was  completed  he  entered  ujxjn  his  business  ca- 
reer in  the  ser\ice  of  the  Baltimore  &  Ohio  Rail- 
road Company,  with  which  he  continuetl  for  two 
years,  when  he  became  an  employe  of  Rand, 
McNally  &  Co.,  of  Chicago,  holding  the  respon- 
sible position  of  Superintendent  of  that  well- 
known  finn  for  six  years. 

On  the  expiration  of  that  periotl.  .Mr.  Hagans 
spent  one  year  in  traveling  in  Euroj>e,  and  on  his 
return  to  America  was  engaged  in  looking  after 
large  landed  interests  in  the  West  for  three  years. 
He  then  again  sjx-nt  a  >  car  in  EurojK-.  after  which 
he  returned  to  the  officx-  of  Rand.  McXally  &  Co., 
with  whom  he  ct)ntinued  until  the  spring  of  1886. 


386 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL    RECORD. 


In  that  year  we  again  find  him  en  route  for  the 
Old  World,  and  he  resided  abroad  until  1890, 
when,  returning,  he  located  in  Elmhurst,  and  has 
since  been  engaged  in  tlie  breeding  of  fine  trotting- 
horses.  In  connection  he  owns  some  property  in 
Chicago.  In  his  political  affiliations,  Mr.  Hagans 
is  a  Republican,  but  has  never  been  an  aspirant 
for  official  honors.  Almost  his  entire  time  and 
attention  have  been  devoted  to  bu.sine.s.s  interests, 
in  which  he  has  met  with  excellent  success.  He 
possesses  the  qualifications  necessan,-  to  a  pros- 
perous career — industr\-,  enterprise  and  per.sever- 
ance — and  by  the  exercise  of  these  characteristics 
he  has  become  one  of  the  substantial  citizens  of 
DuPage  County. 


_^1 


^^^ 


r^ 


r^AUL  V.  CARY,  who  is  one  of  the  wide- 
yr  awake  and  enterprising  young  attorneys  of 
^5  Hinsdale,  was  born  in  Milwaukee,  on  the 
3d  of  September,  1867,  and  began  his  education 
in  the  public  schools  of  his  native  city.  Later  he 
entered  Princeton  Universit}-,  of  Princeton,  X.  J., 
and  after  a  thorough  course  of  study  was  gradu- 
ated from  that  institution  in  1891.  He  then  en- 
tered the  law  department  of  the  Northwestern 
University  of  Chicago,  from  which  he  was  grad- 
uated in  1893,  and  in  March  of  that  year  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  Bar.  He  had  already  opened  an 
office  in  Hinsdale,  and  for  some  time  has  been 
associated  with  Russell  &  Morse.  He  is  a  young 
man  of  indomitable  energy  and  perseverance,  and, 
possessing  many  of  the  needed  qualifications,  he 
will  undoubtedl\'  work  his  wa\'  upward  and  win 
the  well-merited  commendation  of  those  around 
him.  He  exercises  his  right  of  franchi.se  in  sup- 
port of  the  Democratic  party. 

jILLIAM  B.   HINCKLEY  is  the  manager 
of  the  Chicago  agency  of  the  American  In- 
vestment Union  of  New   York,  a   corpora- 
tion developing  selected  city  real   estate  by  com- 


bined capital,  with  mutual  division  of  profits.  He 
is  a  man  of  excellent  business  ability,  sagacious 
and  far-sighted,  and  the  success  of  the  company- 
is  due  in  no  small  measure  to  his  able  manage- 
ment. 

Mr.  Hinckley  makes  his  home  in  Hinsdale.  He 
was  bom  in  Galesburg,  111.,  September  6,  1867, 
and  is  a  son  of  William  S.  and  Jerusha  (  Farnham) 
Hinckley,  both  natives  of  New  York.  The  pa- 
ternal grandfather,  Alfred  Hinckley,  was  born  in 
the  Empire  State,  was  of  English  descent,  and  fol- 
lowed the  occupation  of  farming.  He  had  six 
children,  all  of  whom  are  still  living,  and  he 
reached  the  advanced  age  of  eighty-nine.  The 
maternal  grandfather,  Eli  Farnham,  was  born  in 
New  York.  On  his  mother's  side  W.  S.  Hinck- 
ley traces  his  ancestry  to  Elder  William  Brewster, 
of  Plymouth.  In  early  life  our  subject's  father 
followed  farming,  but  later  became  a  lumber 
dealer.  He  now  lives  in  Hinsdale.  His  first  wife, 
who  was  a  member  of  the  Congregational  Church, 
died  July  4,  1874.  They  had  four  children,  three 
of  whom  are  still  living:  ■  William  B.,  Bessie  L. 
and  Harry  F.  Mr.  Hinckley  is  a  member  of  the 
Baptist  Church.  For  his  second  wife  he  wedded 
Mrs.  Dana,  widow  of  C.  C.  Dana,  of  Chicago. 

William  B.  Hinckley  when  a  lad  of  ten  sum- 
mers removed  with  his  parents  to  Chicago,  where 
he  attended  the  public  schools  for  a  time.  He 
then  became  a  student  in  Phillips  Academy,  of 
Exter,.  N.  H.,  and  later  attended  Har\-ard  Col- 
lege. His  next  study  was  in  the  legal  profession, 
after  which  he  became  connected  with  the  ac- 
countant department  of  the  Union  Pacific  Rail- 
way at  Omaha,  Neb.,  from  where  he  was 
transferred  to  Portland,  Ore.  He  was  after- 
wards connected  with  the  legal  department  of  that 
road  in  Butte,  Mont.,  where  he  remained  until 
May,  1891,  when  he  returned  to  Chicago,  and  be- 
came general  agent  for  the  Williams  Typewriter, 
as  a  member  of  the  firm  of  Humphrey  &  Hinckley. 

On  the  1 5th  of  December,  1891.  Mr.  Hinckley 
led  to  the  marriage  altar  Miss  Blanche  M..  daugh- 
ter of  John  W.  and  Blanche  E.  (Bradley;  Shaw, 
of  Hin.sdale.  One  child  graces  this  union,  Jesse 
Farnham.  The  parents  are  members  of  the  Con- 
gregational Church,  and  are  prominent  and  highly 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


387 


respected  people,  who  hold  an  enviable  position  in 
social  circles.  In  1S80,  Mr.  Hinckley  came  to 
Hinsdale,  where  he  has  since  made  his  home.  In 
politics,  he  is  a  supporter  of  the  Republican  party, 
but  has  never  been  an  t)ffice- seeker. 

Mr.  Hinckley  continued  as  agent  for  the  Will- 
iams Typewriter  until  July,  1.H92,  when  he  sold 
his  interest  in  the  business  and  a.ssumed  the  man- 
agement of  the  general  Northwestem  agency  of  the 
American  Investment  Union,  which  he  now  has 
in  charge.  He  is  a  man  of  superior  education,  well 
fitted  by  his  abilities,  both  natural  and  acquired, 
for  the  work  in  which  he  is  now  engaged.  He 
is  wide-awake  and  enterprising  and  possesses  the 
necessary  qualifications  for  a  successful  business 
career. 


-^3. 


^-i^l 


-S] 


61  DAM  H.  IRWIG,  one  of  the  enterprising 
T\  and  wide-awake  young  business  men  of  Des 
I  I  Plaines,  carries  on  a  hardware  store,  having 
been  connected  with  this  line  of  work  in  its  vari- 
ous departments  since  entering  upon  his  bu.siness 
career.  He  was  boni  in  the  neighboring  State  of 
Wisconsin,  his  birth  having  occurred  in  Wauke- 
.sha  County,  on  the  3d  of  May,  1867.  His  father, 
Nicholas  Irwig,  was  a  native  of  Germany.  He 
married  Kate  Gaugh,  and  they  became  the  par- 
ents of  ten  children,  eight  sons  and  two  daugh- 
ters, who  are  as  follows:  Bena,  wife  of  P.  H. 
Dhein,  a  resident  of  Gemiantown,  Wis.;  Katie, 
now  decea.sed;  Jacob,  ex-Deputy  Sheriff  of  Wau- 
kesha County,  Wis. ;  Philip,  who  is  engaged  in 
farming  in  that  county;  Christopher,  who  makes 
his  home  in  Wauke.sha:  John,  a  contractor  and 
builder  of  Waukesha:  \'alentine,  who  is  living  in 
the  same  city:  Adam  H.,  of  Des  Plaines;  Will- 
iam, who  is  engaged  in  themanufactureofchee.se 
in  Waukesha;  and  Nicholas,  Jr.,  who  resides  in 
Milwaukee,  Wis.,  where  he  is  engaged  in  teach- 
ing. 

We  now  take  up  the  personal  history  of  Adam 
Irwig,  who  spent  the  days  of  his  boyhood  and 
youth  in  the  State  of  his  nativity.  He  acquired 
a  good  education  in   the  schools  of  New  Berlin, 


Wis.,  and  was  thus  fitted  for  the  duties  and  re- 
sponsibilities of  life.  He  early  became  familiar 
with  work  upon  his  father's  fann.  At  length  he 
left  home  to  make  his  own  way  in  the  world,  and 
for  one  year  worked  at  the  carpenter's  trade.  On 
the  expiration  of  that  period  he  began  learning 
the  tinner's  trade  in  the  Wistxjnsin  Central  Car 
Shops  in  Milwaukee.  For  three  years  he  occu- 
pied that  position  and  then  came  to  Des  Plaines, 
where  he  arrived  on  the  1st  of  April,  1891.  He 
entered  the  employ  of  F.  I.  Russell,  who  was  en- 
gaged in  the  hardware  and  tinner's  business,  and 
continued  in  his  .serxice  until  the  followilig  autumn, 
when  he  bought  out  his  employer,  and  has  since 
carried  on  the  business  on  his  own  account. 

On  the  loth  of  November,  1892,  Mr.  Irxvigwas 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Lizzie  Fulle.  The 
young  couple  have  won  many  friends  in  this  lo- 
cality and  are  widely  and  favorably  known.  Mr. 
Irwig  exercises  his  right  of  franchise  in  support 
of  the  Democratic  party,  but  is  not  a  politician  in 
the  popular  sense,  as  he  never  seeks  or  desires 
the  honors  or  emoluments  of  public  oflSce.  So- 
cially, he  is  connected  with  Gladiator  Lodge  No. 
450,  K.  P.,  of  which  he  is  a  charter  member.  In- 
dustr>-  and  enterprise  are  numbered  among  the 
chief  characteristics  of  our  subject,  and  the  suc- 
cess he  has  already  achieved  in  life  argues  well 
for  the  future.  He  possesses  good  business  ability , 
I  and  by  careful  management,  fair  dealing  and 
courteous  treatment  has  won  a  good  trade. 


-=3. 


^■^l 


E HESTER  E.  BENNETT  has  for  twent>- 
years  l)een  connected  with  the  Des  Plaines 
Xais  as  correspondent  editor  and  advertis- 
ing and  subscription  agent,  and  has  been  promi- 
nently identified  with  0ffici.1l  circles  in  this  vicin- 
ity. He  was  born  in  Connecticut  on  the  iith  of 
Februar)-,  1835,  and  is  a  .son  of  Ambrose  and 
Cynthia  M.  (Knai)p)  Bennett.  The  father  was 
born  May  21,  1803,  and  was  also  a  nativeofCon- 
necticut.  The  marriage  of  the  parents  was  cele- 
bratetl  February  15.  1827,  and  unto  them  were 
born    four  children,    three  s«jns  and  a  daughter: 


388 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


George  E.,  of  Bremer  Count\-,  Iowa,  now  de- 
ceased; Chester  of  this  sketch:  Edward  C,  who 
makes  his  home  in  Bremer  Countx- :  and  Sarah 
E..  wife  of  G.  E.  Acken,  of  Humboldt,  Neb. 

Our  subject  spent  the  first  nine  years  of  his  life 
in  the  State  of  his  nativity,  and  then  accompanied 
his  parents  on  their  emigration  to  Chicago.  The 
same  year  they  went  to  McHenr>-  County,  111., 
and  in  its  public  schools  he  was  educated.  He 
afterward  engaged  in  teaching  school,  and  also  in 
teaching  music,  and  a  portion  of  his  time  was  de- 
voted to  farm  work.  His  residence  in  McHenr>- 
Coimty  continued  until  1862,  when  he  went  to 
Iowa,  where  he  remained  for  five  years.  His 
summer  months  were  spent  at  farm  labor,  and  in 
the  winter  season  he  engaged  in  teaching  school 
and  music.  At  length  he  returned  to  McHenr>- 
County,  in  the  spring  of  1868,  and  was  once  more 
numbered  among  its  residents  until  1871.  That 
was  the  year  of  the  great  Chicago  fire,  and  it  was 
also  the  year  of  his  arrival  in  Des  Plaines. 

Mr.  Bennett  was  married  on  the  21st  of  Janu- 
an-,  1865,  the  lady  of  his  choice  being  Miss  Adelia 
Thomas,  a  daughter  of  Elias  E.  and  Hester  Ann 
Thomas,  of  Cook  County.  They  have  become  the 
parents  of  four  children,  who  are  as  follows;  Harry 
T.,  of  Des  Plaines,  who  is  now  employed  as  book- 
keeper in  a  hardware  establishment  of  Chicago: 
Hester  A.,  who  is  engaged  in  teaching  in  the 
public  schools  of  Avondale:   and  Grace,  at  home. 

His  fellow-citizens,  appreciating  his  worth  and 
ability,  have  frequently  called  upon  Mr.  Bennett 
to  ser\-e  in  ofiices  of  public  trust.  In  the  spring 
of  1873,  he  was  elected  Township  Clerk,  and  so 
acceptably  did  he  discharge  the  duties  of  the  posi- 
tion, that  he  was  continued  therein  for  seventeen 
years,  or  until  the  spring  of  1890.  In  the  autumn 
of  1873  he  was  elected  School  Treasurer  of  Maine 
Township,  which  ofiBce  he  held  until  1884.  He 
was  elected  and  ,sen-ed  three  terms  as  Village 
Clerk,  for  twenty  years  has  held  the  office  of  No- 
tary Public,  and  is  now  ser\'ing  in  that  position. 
No  higher  testimonial  to  his  faithfulness  could  be 
given  than  his  long  continuance  in  these  various 
positions.  He  is  a  supporter  of  the  Republican 
party  and  its  principles.  Mr.  Bennett  attends 
and   supports   the    Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 


with  which  his  three  daughters  hold  member- 
ship. He  is  also  the  leader  of  its  choir.  Enter- 
prising in  the  highest  and  best  sense  of  the  word, 
he  has  aided  materially  in  the  advancement  and 
promotion  of  the  interests  of  Des  Plaines.  He  has 
led  a  busy  and  useful  life,  his  career  has  been  an 
honorable  and  upright  one,  and  he  will  leave  to 
his  family  the  pricele.ss  heritage  of  a  good   name. 


^^^-^f^m^ 


p; 


IZEL  FARNSWORTH  HATCH,  a  promin- 
ent and  well-known  attorney-at-law  of  Chi- 
cago, living  in  Lisle,  was  boni  on  the  6th 
of  September,  1848,  in  Lisle  Township,  DuPage 
County,  and  was  the  fifth  in  a  family  of  six  chil- 
dren boni  to  James  C.  and  Charlotte  ( Kidder  1 
Hatch.  He  remained  upon  the  home  farm  until 
sixteen  >ears  of  age,  and  attended  the  public 
schools  of  the  neighborhood,  there  acquiring  his 
priman,-  education.  In  1867,  he  entered  Ober- 
lin  College,  of  Oberlin,  Ohio,  where  he  continued 
his  studies  until  1870,  when  he  became  a  student 
of  the  senior  class  in  Yale  University.  In  1871, 
he  was  graduated  from  that  institution,  after 
which  he  accepted  the  principalship  of  the  High 
School  of  Sheboygan,  Wis.,  where  he  continued 
for  a  year. 

Mr.  Hatch  arrived  in  Chicago  in  1872,  and  be- 
gan the  study  of  law  in  the  office  of  Shorey  & 
Norton,  attorneys,  with  whom  he  continued  for 
about  two  years,  when,  in  September,  1874,  he 
was  admitted  to  the  Bar.  In  December  following 
he  entered  upon  the  practice  of  his  profession,  and 
during  the  first  year  was  associated  with  Messrs. 
Norton  and  Hulburd.  under  the  style  of  Norton, 
Hulburd  &  Hatch.  In  1880,  he  formed  a  part- 
nership with  O.  P".  Aldis,  and  under  the  firm 
name  of  Hatch  &  Aldis  these  gentlemen  con- 
tinued business  for  several  years,  when  the  part- 
nership was  dissolved.  Mr.  Hatch  is  now  alone 
in  business.  He  has  been  very  successful  in  his 
legal  practice  and  has  won  an  enviable  reputation 
therein. 

On  the  5th  of  February,  1880.  our  subject  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Grace  H.  Greene,  of 


^Photod  by  Mills 


Dr.  a.   Watkk.max. 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


39  > 


Lisle,  daughter  «>t  Daiiitl  tirt-eiie,  of  DuPage 
County.  By  their  union  were  born  four  daugh- 
ters: Alice  v..  Helen.  Laura  and  Grace  P. 
All  are  still  with  their  father.  The  mother's 
death  occurred  in  Chicago,  on  the  iSth  of  April, 
1886. 

Mr.  Hatch  is  a  Republican  in  political  sentiment, 
hut  is  not  .strongly  parti.san,  and  has  never  Inren 
an  office-seeker,  preferring  to  devote  his  entire 
time  and  attention  to  his  legal  practice  and  other 
business  interests^.  He  is  connected  with  various 
important  concerns  of  the  city.  He  is  one  of  the 
Directors  and  owners  of  the  Chicago  Herald  and 
the  Chicago  Riming  Post,  and  is  also  one  of  the 
exchequer  ctjmmittee  of  the  Equitable  Trust  Com- 
pany of  Chicago.  He  is  a  Director  of  the  I'nited 
Press,  and  is  al.so  connected  with  several  other 
enterprises  He  has  been  a  member  of  the  Board 
of  Directors  of  the  Chicago  Library  for  three 
years.  He  had  charge  of  the  organization  of  the 
committees  of  the  World's  Fair  and  of  the  first 
meeting  of  the  stockholders.  This  w.is  one  of 
the  mast  wonderful  corporations  ever  formed,  as 
there  were  at  that  time  over  twenty-eight  thou- 
sand stockholders.  He  took  an  active  part  in 
promoting  the  intere.sts  of  the  World's  Columbian 
Exposition,  and  did  all  in  his  power  toward  mak- 
ing the  Fair  a  success.  He  is  a  well-known  and 
leading  citizen  and  a  worthy  representative  of  the 
enterprise  and  progressive  spirit  which  ha\  e  made 
Chicago  the  second  city  of  the  Union. 

0R.  ALFRED  WATERMAN,  a  pioneer  of 
DuPage  County  and  a  prominent  citizen  of 
Wheaton,  is  descended  from  one  of  the  earli- 
est American-Puritan  families.  His  first  pro- 
genitor in  this  country  was  Richard  Waterman, 
who  was  bom  in  Bristol,  England,  in  1590,  and 
came  in  1631  to  Salem,  Mass..  in  company  with 
Roger  Williams,  In  common  with  the  latter,  he 
was  banished  from  the  Massachusetts  Colony  fi\e 
vears  later,  and  was  one  of  eleven  to  settle  in  the 
town  of  Warwick,  R.  I.,  from  which  Coventr>- 
was  subsequently  set  off.     He  died  there  in  1663. 


He  had  two  son>,  Nathaniel  ami  Rtr>olve,  The 
latter  marrie<l  a  daughter  of  Roger  William^. 
The  first  ha«i  a  son  Richard,  whose  son,  Am- 
aziah,  had  a  son  Richard,  the  great-grandfather 
of  Dr,  Watennan.  A  remarkable  feature  in  the 
genealogy  of  the  last-nametl  is  the  fact  that  the 
entire  line  of  his  paternal  ancestors  nins  through 
the  eldest  son.  Richard,  the  great-grandfather  of 
our  subject,  was  bom  at  Providence  in  1751,  mar- 
ried Elizabeth  \'aughn.  and  live<l  to  the  age  of 
ninety-seven  years.  His  son  Stephen  married 
Eliza  O.  Brayton,  and  died  in  February,  1855, 
aged  seventy-eight  years.  .Stephen  had  five  sons 
and  three  daughters,  nearly  all  of  whom  are  now 
living. 

The  elde.st  of  these.  George,  Ijoni  in  Foster  in 
1.S04,  was  the  first  to  leave  Rhode  Island.  He 
died  in  California  in  1857.  while  separated  from 
all  his  kindred.  In  1834  he  went  to  Black  Rock, 
near  Bufi"alo,  N.  V.,  where  he  was  employed  for 
five  years  as  foreman  on  the  construction  of  a 
breakwater  and  the  nianitenance  of  the  Erie 
Canal.  Starting  west  from  there,  he  arrived  in 
Chicago  on  tHe  3d  of  June,  1839.  and  the  next 
day  went  to  Warren ville,  DuPage  County,  with 
his  family.  He  immediately  secured  employment 
on  the  Illinois  &  Michigan  Canal  in  his  old  capa- 
citv  of  forenian,  and  lived  at  the.sceneof  his  work 
until  1841,  when  the  work  was  temporarily 
abandoned.  Returning  to  Warrenville,  he  en- 
gaged in  farming  in  Winfield  Town.ship,  ser\ing 
as  Justice  of  the  Peace  meanwhile.  In  Januar>-, 
1S49,  his  wife  died,  and  the  ne.xt  year  he  started 
for  California,  across  the  plains.  In  the  summer 
of  that  year,  he  left  Council  Bluffs  alone,  with  his 
supplies  in  a  hand-cart,  which  he  trundled  for  a 
thousand  miles.  Of  course,  the  trail  was  covered 
with  argonauts.  Ijut  he  did  not  attach  himself  to 
any  party  until  the  mountains  preventeti  further 
progress  with  his  indejiendent  conveyance.  After 
working  a  month  in  the  harvest  fields  at  Salt  Lake 
Citv,  he  tix)k  a  partner,  and  drove  with  oxen  to 
Nevada  City,  Cal.,  where  he  arrived  in  Octoljer. 
Here  he  engaged  in  mining  for  a  time  success- 
full  v.  and  then  sold  his  claim  and  went  to  Sacra- 
mento during  the  winter,  and  there  met  his  son, 
who  had  preceded  him  in  the  trip  to  the  Golden 


3y2 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


State  the  previous  spring.  In  the  spring  of  185 1 
he  started  a  pack-train  from  Sacramento  to 
Shasta  and  the  gold  mines,  and  settled  during 
that  year  at  Yreka,  where  he  engaged  in  mining 
and  Operated  a  horse- ranch.  In  1857  he  started 
to  return  to  Illinois,  but  was  induced  by  physi-  ' 
cians  at  Sacramento  to  submit  to  an  operation  for 
the  removal  of  a  fatt\-  tumor,  weighing  twenty-six 
pounds,  from  his  leg.  The  result  was  fatal,  and 
he  was  buried  long  before  his  family  and  friends 
knew  his  fate. 

His  wife  Deborah  was  a  daughter  of  Benjamin 
and  Phrebe  Seamans,  and  was  born  in  Foster, 
R.  I.  Phoebe  Seamans  was  a  daughter  of  Capt. 
John  Johnson,  who  conunanded  a  company  of  the 
Continental  army,  in  which  service  Benjamin 
Seamans,  grandfather  of  Mrs.  Watennan,  was  a 
private.  Only  two  children  of  George  and  Deb- 
orah Waterman  survived  above  one  year  of  age. 
Laura  R..  the  second  of  these,  bom  in  1845.  is 
now  the  wife  of  Ada  L.  Bostwick,  residing  in 
Miller.  Okla. ,  whither  lhe\-  went  in  hope  of  mend- 
ing Mr.  Bostwick' s  health.  He  is  the  son  of  A. 
A.  Bostwick,  an  early  settler  at  Warrenville,  and 
is  a  skillful  mechanic. 

Alfred  Waterman  was  born  at  Coventry.  Kent 
County,  R.  I.,  Januar>-  12.  1826.  He  had  very 
little  opportunity  to  attend  school  until  after  his 
father  left  the  canal  and  settled  at  Warrenville. 
During  the  winters  of  1839,  1840  and  1841,  he 
worked  at  boy's  jobs  about  the  canal,  and  later 
assisted  his  father  in  farming.  In  the  fall  of  1842 
an  academy  was  established  at  Warrenville,  and 
he  attended  this  during  the  winters  until  1846, 
when  he  taught  in  the  same  school.  During  the 
summer  seasons  he  continued  farming  in  companj- 
with  his  father.  In  the  mean  time  he  began 
reading  medicine  with  Dr.  L.  Q.  Newton,  an  able 
physician  of  Warrenville.  In  the  fall  of  1848  he 
attended  the  opening  session  of  the  College  of 
Physicians  and  Surgeons  of  the  Upper  Mississippi, 
at  Rock  Island,  111.,  and  graduated  from  that 
institution  March  13,  1850,  at  Davenport,  Iowa. 
Its  successor  is  now  a  flourishing  establishment 
at  Keokuk. 

Within  a  few  days  after  his  graduation,  our  sub- 
ject joined  L.  L.  Newton,  a  brother  of  his  medical 


preceptor,  and  Thomas  Harker.  of  Warrenville, 
now  a  resident  of  Batavia.  in  forming  an  expedi- 
tion to  California.  His  partners  started  with  a 
team  across  the  countn-,  and  a  few  daj-s  later, 
April  17,  he  started  by  way  of  St.  Louis,  where 
he  purchased  supplies  for  the  expedition  and 
shipped  them  by  boat  up  the  Missouri  River.  By 
a  singular  coincidence,  the  whole  part}-  arrived 
at  the  appointed  rendezvous,  St.  Joseph,  Mo., 
the  same  morning.  Tiiey  left  that  city  the  same 
day,  the  9th  of  May.  by  wagon,  overtaking  some 
Illinois  acquaintances  in  the  vicinity  of  Ft. 
Kearney,  and  arrived  at  Placerville,  Cal.  (then 
called  Hangtown).  on  the  26th  of  July,  seventy- 
eight  days  from  St.  Joseph.  That  was  con.sidered 
a  remarkably  quick  trip  in  those  days,  but  would 
be  wonderfully  tardy  in  this  day  of  Pacific  rail- 
ways. From  St.  Joseph  the  party  numbered  four, 
and  each  man  rode  alternately  one  hour  and 
walked  three.  It  was  agreed  that  the  team  must 
be  in  the  road  each  morning  at  sunrise,  and  this 
agreement  was  kept.  Their  horses  were  thus 
ready  to  turn  out  to  grass  early  in  the  afternoon, 
before  other  teams  had  consumed  the  feed,  and 
this  carried  them  through  on  quick  time  and  with 
teams  in  good  condition  on  arrival. 

In  September,  1850,  Dr.  Waterman  proceeded 
to  Sacramento,  and  remained  there  until  May  22, 
1852.  He  formed  a  partnership  with  John  Thomp- 
sc»J.  an  old  ship-carpenter,  and  they  fitted  up  a 
wharf-boat  and  engaged  in  general  river  work, 
.such  as  caulking,  repairing  and  construction. 
They  built  several  pole- boats  for  the  Yuba  River, 
and  altogether  did  a  very  profitable  business. 
After  paying  a  visit  to  his  father  at  Yreka,  he 
went  to  Jacksonville,  Ore. ,  and  engaged  in  min- 
ing with  a  partner,  T.  B.  Brennan.  on  the  5th  of 
July,  1852.  After  mining  over  four  months  with- 
out seeing  a  ' '  color, ' '  in  November  they  dug  out 
$2,000  in  a  week.  They  spent  the  winter  there, 
continuing  their  operations  in  the  spring,  Dr. 
Waterman  being  at  this  time  elected  Justice  of  the 
Peace. 

The  Indians,  having  no  respect  for  civil  author- 
ity, began  depredations  in  August  following,  and 
Dr.  Waterman,  beside  his  duties  as  surgeon,  was 
made  Second  Lieutenant  of  the  Jacksonville  bat- 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


talion,  which  joined  tht-  I'liitt-d  States  forces  in 
quelling  the  outbreak.  This  force  had  several 
encounters  with  Indians  in  ambush,  and  sen'ed 
till  November,  most  of  the  time  acting  as  escort 
for  emigrants  over  ,sixt>  miles  of  the  route  fol- 
lowed by  them,  near  Go<«e  Lake.  This  campaign 
was  known  as  the  '  Rogue  River  War."  In  his 
capacity  of  surgeon  Dr.  Waterman  treated  and 
became  intimately  acquainted  with  Joseph  Lane, 
in  iS6o  candidate  for  \'ice -President  on  the 
Breckenridge  ticket,  an  acquaintance  which  .sub- 
sequently proved  useful  to  him  in  prasecuting  his 
claims  for  ser\-ices  and  medicines  furnished  in  the 
Govennnent  .service.  Selling  out  the  mine,  he 
paid  another,  and,  as  it  proved,  the  last  \isit  to 
his  father,  wintering  at  Yreka,  and  then  set  out  for 
Illinois.  He  left  San  Francisco  by  steamer  in 
July,  and  reached  New  York,  by  the  Nicaragua 
route,  on  the  7th  of  August,  1854.  The  next 
year  was  spent  in  settling  the  estate  of  his  grand- 
father in  Rhode  Island,  and  collecting  his  claims 
against  the  United  States  Government. 

In  May,  1S56,  Dr.  Waterman  settled  at  Whea- 
ton  and  engaged  in  what  proved  a  ver>-  success- 
ful practice  of  his  profe.s.sion.  On  the  17th  of 
March.  1859,  he  was  married  to  Lucy  Mariette, 
daughter  of  Jude  P.  Gar>-,  and  began  farming  in 
partnership  with  his  brother-in-law,  George  P. 
Gar\-,  on  the  old  Gary  homestead  in  Winfield. 
(See  biography  of  Jude  P.  Gary,  elsewhere  in 
this  work. )  Mrs.  Waterman  was  bom  in  Win- 
field  September  27.  1840,  and  is  .still  the  Doctor's 
faithful  helpmate  and  companion. 

In  the  spring  of  186 1  Dr.  Waterman  offered  his 
.services  to  Gov.  Yates,  as  surgeon  in  the  Union 
army,  but  was  prevented  by  an  attack  of  inflam- 
mation of  the  eyes  from  accepting  the  connnission 
offered  him.  He  went  to  Sedalia,  Mo.,  in  the 
following  autumn,  and  became  contract  surgeon 
for  the  care  of  the  men  of  the  Eighth  Iowa  In- 
fantry through  the  succeeding  winter.  Although 
requested  by  the  officers  and  men  to  appoint  Dr. 
Waterman  as  surgeon  of  that  regiment,  the  Gov- 
ernor of  Iowa  refused  to  do  .so,  l)ecau.se  the  Doctor 
was  not  a  re.sident  of  Iowa.  After  the  battle  of 
Pittsburg  Landing,  at  the  request  of  Gov.  Yates, 
Dr.  Waterman  visited   the  field,   and   was  again 


em])loyed  for  a  short  time  in  caring  for  the  Eighth 
Iowa.  In  September,  1862,  he  was  conunissioned 
as  As,sistant  Surgeon  of  the  One  Hundred  and 
Fifth  Illinois  Infantry,  his  old  friend  and  former 
fellow-student  under  Dr.  Newton,  Dr.  Horace  S. 
Potter,  of  Chicago,  being,  at  Dr.  Waterman's  re- 
quest, made  First  Surgeon  in  preference  to  himself. 
On  the  2d  of  June,  1864.  near  Dallas,  Ga.,  Dr. 
Potter's  head  was  shot  off  by  a  cannon-ball,  and 
Dr.  Waterman  then  succeeded  him  as  First  Sur- 
geon, .ser\ing  in  that  capacity  till  June  7,  1865, 
when  he  was  nuistered  out.  with  the  regiment. 
Except  on  a  few  short  details  for  ho.spital  service, 
he  was  continuou.sly  in  the  field  with  his  men. 
From  Resaca,  May  15.  to  Septeml^er  4,  1865.  the 
fighting  was  almo.st  continuous  about  Atlanta,  Dr. 
Waterman's  regiment  lieing  a  part  of  the  First 

'  Brigade,  Third  Division,  of  the  Twentieth  Corps. 
He  was  beloved  by  his  men,  and  was  remarkable 

I   for  his  memory  of  every   individual  case  treated 

I   by  him  throughout  the  war. 

In  the  winter  of  1865-66.  the  Doctor  took  a 
course  of  lectures  at  Bellevue  Hospital  Medical 
College,  N .  Y . .  and  resumed  practice  at  Warren- 
ville,  removing  thence  to  Wheaton  in  1868.  In 
the  autumn  of  the  next  year,  he  resigned  his  prac- 

'  tice  and  went  to  Colorado,  in  company  with  H.  C. 
Childs.  a  proriiinent  earh-  re.sident  of  Wlieaton, 
and  engaged  in  sheep-raising,  which  proved  rea- 
sonably profitable.  In  May,  187 1,  he  was  ap- 
pointed Chief  Clerk  under  Gen.  B.  J.  Sweet.  Su- 
per\isor  of  Internal  Revenue  at  Chicago,   an<i  re- 

I  mained  with  him  and  his  successor,  being  part  of 
the  time  a  ganger,  for  four  years.  In  November, 
1875,  he  went  to  Crawford  County.  Iowa,  where 
he  had  landed  and  other  interests,  and  remained 
there  until  18S8,  when  he  returned  to  Wheaton 
and  purchased  his  present  residence  on  West 
Street.  To  this  he  added  in  1893.  and  now  has  a 
very  desirable  home. 

Dr.  Waterman  possesses  an  active  mind  and 
remarkably  .strong  memon,-,  and  wields  a  wide 
influence  in  the  communit>-.  He  is  of  i^hlegmatic 
temperament,  and  slow  to  speak  or  act.  but  his 
judgment  is  rarely  questioned,  and  he  has  been 
ver>'  successful  in  his  niedical  practice.  He  is  a 
power  in  political  management,   and  holds  an  im- 


394 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


portant  place  in  local  councils  of  the  Republican 
party.  With  his  large  and  varied  experience  and 
wide  reading,  he  is  amply  fitted  for  good  citizen- 
ship, and  is  an  excellent  entertainer.  While  a 
resident  at  West  Side,  Iowa,  he  served  as  Justice 
of  the  Peace  for  .several  years.  He  is  a  Knight 
Templar  Mason,  and  embraces  the  faith  of  the 
Methodist  Church.  Mrs.  Waterman  is  a  member 
of  that  organization. 

Of  the  six  children  of  Dr.  Waterman,  five  are 
now  living.  Alice,  the  eldest,  the  wife  of  Clar- 
ence C.  Jewett,  died  in  1882,  aged  twenty -two 
years,  leaving  a  daughter,  who  is  named  Alice. 
Margaret  Eliza  is  the  widow  of  E.  T.  Jewett. 
George  is  a  book-keeper  in  the  Corn  Exchange 
Bank  at  Chicago.  •  Richard  Henry  is  employed 
in  the  freight  office  of  the  Chicago,  Milwaukee  & 
St.  Paul  Railroad  at  Chicago.  Fred  Mather  is 
exchange  clerk  in  the  Merchants"  Loan  &  Trust 
Company  Bank;  and  Alfred,  Jr.,  is  in  the  general 
claim  department  of  the  Chicago  &  Northwestern 
Railroad  at  Chicago. 


CQ  W.  KINGSLEY.  one  of  the  honored  pic- 
TjV  neers  of  Cook  County,  who  dates  his  resi- 
V2/  dence  here  from  1840,  is  now  li\-ing  a  retired 
life  in  Barrington.  enjoying  the  rest  which  he  has 
truly  earned  and  richly  deser\"es.  He  was  born 
in  the  town  of  North  Adams,  Bei4ishire  County, 
Mass.,  Augu.st  4,  18 18,  and  is  a  son  of  Elisha 
Kingsley,  a  native  of  Bristol,  Mass.  The  father 
was  married  in  the  Bay  State  to  Hannah  An- 
thony, a  native  of  Rhode  Island,  and  a  daughter 
of  Capt.  Anthony,  who  died  at  sea.  Mr.  Kings- 
ley  was  a  blacksmith  by  trade,  and  also  carried 
on  a  farm,  upon  which  he  reared  his  family.  His 
entire  life  was  spent  in  the  State  of  his  nativity. 
The  Kingsley  family  numbered  five  sons  and  a 
daughter,  who  grew  to  mature  years,  but  only 
two  are  now  living:  S.  W.,  and  Elisha,  who  now 
resides  in  North  Adams,  Mass. ,  at  the  advanced 
age  of  ninety-one. 

Our  subject  spent  the  days  of  his  boyhood  and 
youth  upon  the  home  farm,  and  received  the  ad- 


vantages of  the  North  Adams  High  School.  Be- 
lieving that  the  new  and  growing  West  furnished 
better  opportunities  to  ambitious  young  men  than 
the  more  thickly-setttled  States  of  the  East,  in 
1840  he  started  for  Illinois.  In  May  of  that 
year  he  located  in  Cook  Comity,  and  purchased  a 
claim  of  one  hundred  and  twenty  acres  in  Bar- 
rington Township.  There  were  no  buildings 
upon  the  place,  and  but  little  of  the  land  had  been 
broken,  but  Mr.  Kingsley  at  once  began  to  plow 
and  plant  it,  and  soon  opened  up  a  good  farm. 
He  built  the  first  frame  house  in  the  township,  a 
structure  14  x  20  feet,  and  a  story  and  a-half  in 
height.  During  the  first  years  he  suflFered  many 
of  the  privations  and  hard.ships  of  pioneer  life, 
but  as  time  wore  on  these  gave  way  before  the 
comforts  of  civilization  which  he  was  able  to  ob- 
tain. He  afterwards  bought  more  land,  and  now 
owns  two  adjoining  farms,  comprising  three  hun- 
dred and  seventy-six  acres  of  \aluable  land,  all 
highh  improved.  Both  places  are  supplied  with 
good  buildings,  and  to  the  owner  they  yield  a 
considerable  income.  In  1881.  Mr.  Kingsley 
purchased  residence  property  in  Barrington.  and 
has  .since  lived  there  retired. 

In  politics,  in  early  life,  our  subject  was  a  Jack- 
son Democrat,  but  on  the  organization  of  the  Re- 
publican party  he  joined  its  ranks,  and  has  since 
been  a  warm  advocate  of  its  men  and  measures. 
He  has  been  honored  with  a  number  of  local 
offices  of  honor  and  trust.  He  aided  in  the  organ- 
ization of  Barrington  Township,  and  was  elected 
and  ser\-ed  as  Super\-isor  for  twelve  terms.  He 
was  also  Collector  and  Highway  Commissioner. 
and  by  faithful  discharge  of  dut>  he  won  the 
commendation  of  all  concerned.  He  has  been 
President  of  the  Barrington  Insurance  Company, 
and  has  also  ser\ed  as  its  Treasurer. 

In  1841,  Mr.  Kingsley  returned  to  North 
Adams,  Mass.,  and  on  the  22d  of  April  led  to  the 
marriage  altar  Miss  Waitay  Waterman,  who  is 
also  a  native  of  Berkshire  County,  and  a  daughter 
of  George  T.  Waterman,  of  North  Adams,  Mass. 
The  children  bom  to  them  are  as  follows:  Man,-, 
who  became  the  wife  of  Henn.-  Sawyer,  of  Car- 
pentersville,  Kane  County,  and  there  died  in 
1880;  Sarah  Jane,  the  wife  of  Dunham  Church,  of 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


.^95 


Thayer  County,  Neb.;  Hannah  M..  the  wife  of 
Leroy  Powers,  of  Harrington :  Nancy  A.,  the  wife 
of  Lynus  Line.s.  of  Harvey,  111.:  Harriet  K..  the 
wife  of  William  Wilson,  of  Elgin  Townsliip,  Kane 
County;  Alice  A.,  the  wife  of  George  W.  Demp- 
ster, of  Dundee,-  Kane  County:  and  Henr>-  E., 
who  married  Junie  Wriglit,  and  is  a  substantial 
fanner  of  Barrington  Township.  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Kingsley  have  seventeen  grandchildren  and  three 
great-grandchildren.  Mr.  Kingsley  has  been  a 
re.sident  of  Cook  County  for  fifty-four  years,  and 
is  both  widely  and  favorably  known.  As  an 
honored  pioneer  and  a  man  of  sterling  worth,  he 
well  deserves  representation  among  the  best  citi- 
zens of  his  adopted  count>'. 


EHARLES  L.  HARTUNG.  a  retired  farmer 
residing  in  Palatine,  has  made  his  home  in 
Co;)k  County  since  1832,  and  is  therefore 
familiar  with  its  hi.story  and  with  its  growth 
and  upbuilding.  A  native  of  Germany,  he 
was  bom  in  Hesse  on  the  4th  of  June.  1836, 
and  is  a  son  of  Henry  C.  Hartnng.  His 
father  was  born  and  reared  in  Hanover, 
and  after  reaching  man's  e.state  he  was  married 
in  Hesse  to  Miss  Gertrude  Brown,  a  native  of 
that  locality.  By  occupation  he  was  a  miller, 
and  followed  that  pursuit  in  his  native  land  until 
1852.  when  he  bade  go(Kl-bye  to  his  (jld  home. 
and  with  his  family  sailed  for  the  New  World. 
They  t(X)k  pas.sage  on  a  sailing-ves.sel  at  Havre 
lx)und  for  New  York,  and  for  thirty-three  days 
were  upon  the  broad  Atlantic.  They  encoun- 
tered some  .severe  storms,  but  at  length  reached 
harbor  in  safety  on  the  ,^d  of  October,  1S52.  By 
way  of  the  Hudson  River  and  the  Erie  Canal, 
they  at  once  came  to  the  West,  reaching  Chicago 
four  weeks  after  their  arrival  in  the  New  World. 
Soon  after  they  located  in  Palatine  Township, 
where  the  father  purchased  a  tract  of  land  of 
eighty  acres  and  lx;gan  farming.  He  there  op)ened 
up  a  good  fann  with  the  assistance  of  his  .sons, 
placing  his  land  under  a  high  state  of  cultivation. 
When  he  had  secured    sufficient  capital,  he  pur- 


chased an  adjoining  eighty  acres,  and  made  a 
nice  home,  ujwn  which  he  continnetl  to  reside 
until  called  to  his  final  rest.  His  death  occurred 
in  December,  1857.  His  wife  survived  him  for 
about  twenty -one  years,  pas,sing  away  in  1878. 
Both  lie  buried  in  Elm  Cemetery,  where  a 
marble  monument  has  been  erected  sacred  to 
their  memory. 

In  the  Hartung  familv  were  six  children,  two 
sons  and  four  daughters,  all  of  whom  grew  to 
mature  years.  Henry  was  married,  and  at  his 
death  left  a  family  of  five  children:  PHiza  is  the 
wife  of  Louie  Gille,  of  Barrington:  Emily  mar- 
ried Henry  Casting,  of  Chicago:  Minnie  is  the 
wife  of  H.  Win-ieke.  of  Palatine:  Sophia  mar- 
ried John  Coblank,  of  Lake  County.  111.:  and 
Charles  completes  the  famih  . 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  sjjent  the  first  six- 
teen years  of  his  life  in  his  native  land,  and  there 
acquired  a  good  education,  attending  the  public 
.schools  and  a  private  academy.  His  education 
in  English,  however,  has  been  acquired  entirely 
through  his  own  efforts.  He  came  to  this  coun- 
tr\  with  his  parents  when  a  young  man  of  seven- 
teen years,  and  helped  open  up  the  old  home- 
stead farm  in  C<M)k  Connt\-.  He  gave  to  his 
father  the  benefit  of  his  services  until  the  death 
of  the  latter,  when  he  took  charge  of  the  farm, 
managing  it  successfully.  With  him  his  mother 
made  her  home  until  called  to  her  final  rest.  At 
her  death  he  succeeded  to  a  half-interest  in 
eighty  acres  of  the  old  homestead,  and  continued 
its  further  cultivation  for  a  numlier  of  years. 

On  the  30th  of  November.  1862,  in  Palatine 
Township.  Cook  Connt\ ,  Mr.  Hartung  married 
Miss  Sophia  Robinson,  a  native  of  Hes.se,  Ger- 
many. The\  had  three  children:  William,  a 
farmer  of  Palatine  Township;  Lydia.  a  young 
lady,  at  home:  and  Charles,  who  is  married  and 
resides  in  Chicago,  where  he  holds  a  responsible 
business  position.  They  also  lost  one  .son.  Louie, 
who  died  in  June.  18.S4,  at  the  age  of  nineteen 
years. 

On  selling  his  interest  in  the  old  homestead. 
Mr.  Hartung  purcha.sed  an  a<ljoining  tract  of  one 
hundred  and  seveiUy-eighl  acres.  I'pon  it  he 
erected  a  large  and  substaiUial  residence  and  a 


396 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL    RECORD. 


good  bani,  and  transformed  the  land  into  rich 
and  fertile  fields.  He  made  of  the  place  one  of 
the  valuable  farms  of  the  county,  and  success- 
fullv  continued  its  cultivation  until  1884,  when 
he  rented  it,  and  bought  residence  property  in 
Palatine,  where  he  has  since  made  his  home. 
Mr.  Hartung  commenced  life  for  himself  with 
ver>-  limited  means,  but  his  labor,  enterprise  and 
good  management  have  made  him  one  of  the 
.substantial  citizens  of  the  community,  bringing  to 
him  a  comfortable  competence. 

In  his  political  views,  our  subject  has  been  a 
Republican  since  casting  his  first  Presidential 
vote  for  Abraham  Lincoln  in  1 860.  He  and  his 
family  are  all  members  of  St.  Paul's  Evangelical 
Church.  His  residence  in  this  community  covers 
the  long  period  of  forty-two  years,  during  which 
time  he  has  not  only  been  an  eye-witness  of  the 
changes  which  have  occurred,  but  has  also  aided 
in  the  development  and  progre.ss  of  the  commu- 
nity, doing  all  he  could  for  its  be.st  interests.  His 
life  has  been  well  and  worthily  pa.ssed,  and  the  re.st 
which  he  is  !iow  enjoying  is  well  deser^•ed. 


— l^HJH^^ 


3 


OHX   ROBERTSON,  a  highly  respected  citi- 
zen of  Barrington,   now  living  a  retired  life, 
is   numbered  among  the  native  sons  of  Illi- 
nois, his  birth  having  occurred  in   Lake  County, 
December  29,  1844.     His  father,  John  Robertson, 
was  bom  in  New  Hampshire,   October  20.    1810, 
and  in   1837   emigrated  westward  to   this  State, 
settling  near  Deer  Grove,  Lake  County.     He  was 
one  of  the  honored  pioneers  of  that  locality.      He 
married  Charlotte  Sutherland,   who  was  bom  in 
\'eraiont,  but  in  her  girlhood  came  to  this  State 
with  her  father,   an    honored    pioneer   of    Cook 
County.     Mr.   Robertson  started  out  in  life  for 
himself  with  no  capital  save  a  young  man' s  bright 
hope  of  the  future   and   a  deteraiination  to  suc- 
ceed,  but   by    industr>-    and    good    management 
he  worked  his  wa\-   upward   and  became  a  sub- 
stantial citizen.     He  was  recognized  as  one  of  the 
leading  men  of  Lake  County.     He  took  an  active 
part  in  local  politics  and  held  numerous  official 


positions  of  honor  and  tmst,  discharging  his  duties 
with  credit  to  himself  and  satisfaction  to  his  con- 
stituents. He  passed  away  September  8,  1877, 
at  the  age  of  .sixty-seven,  and  his  wife  died  two 
vears  previous,  in  1875.  They  He  buried  in  Fair- 
field Cemetery,  where  a  monument  has  been 
erected  to  their  memorj-. 

John  Robert.son  is  the  second  in  order  of  birth 
in  their  family  of  four  sons  and  five  daughters. 
Lvdia,  the  eldest,  is  the  wife  of  WiUiara  Hicks, 
of  Palatine:  Silas  is  living  retired  in  Barrington: 
Cordelia  is  the  wife  of  Edward  Clark,  of  Barring- 
ton: Persis  is  the  wife  of  James  Diamond,  of  Nor- 
mal Park:  Joseph  died  at  the  age  of  nineteen 
years:  Mary  is  the  wife  of  Charles  Patten,  of 
Palatine:  Elmer  resides  in  Palatine:  and  Lydia 
died  at  the  age  of  twenty-one. 

In  his  parents'  home,  John  Robertson  spent  the 
days  of  his  boyhood  and  youth,  and  the  schools 
of  Lake  County  afforded  him  his  educational  priv- 
ileges. After  arriving  at  mature  years  he  turned 
his  attention  to  farming,  which  he  followed  in 
Lake  Count>-  for  twenty  years.  He  owned  and 
operated  four  hundred  acres  of  valuable  land  and 
was  a  successful  agriculturist.  In  1887  he  rented 
his  farm,  purchased  a  residence  in  Barrington, 
and  has  since  made  his  home  in  this  place.  He 
owns  a  large  and  valuable  farm  at  Lake  Zurich, 
where  he  has  a  nice  sunmier  residence,  and  each 
year  he  and  his  famih  there  spend  about  four 
months.  He  is  also  one  of  the  .stockholders  and 
directors  in  the  Barrington  Bank. 

On  the  .',d  of  October.  1866,  in  Lake  County, 
Mr.  Robertson  married  Julia  E.,  daughter  of 
Da\id  Parker,  who  removed  from  \'ermont  to 
Lake  County  in  an  early  day,  and  there  spent  the 
remainder  of  his  life.  His  daughter  was  bom  in 
Erie  Countv.  N.  Y.,  but  was  reared  in  this  State. 
Our  subject  and  his  wife  have  five  children:  Cora, 
wife  of  A.  J.  Leonard,  of  Rockefeller.  111.;  Albert 
L.,  who  is  employed  in  Chicago;'  Emma,  at  home; 
Frank,  a  successful  teacher  of  Cook  County;  and 
Lvdia,  who  is  attending  .school  in  Mayfair. 

Since  casting  his  first  Presidential  vote  for  Gen. 
Grant  in  1868,  Mr.  Roberts  has  been  a  stalwart 
advocate  o:"  the  Republican  part\-  and  its  princi- 
ples,  and  has  frequently   sened  as  a  delegate  to 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


397 


its  conventions.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Barring- 
ton  Lodge  of  Modem  Woodmen,  and  is  a  chari- 
table and  benevolent  man,  who  contributes  liber- 
ally to  churches  and  worthy  enterprises,  and  does 
all  in  his  power  to  advance  the  best  interests  of 
the  community.  His  sterling  worth  and  many 
excellencies  of  character  have  made  him  a  highly 
respected  citizen. 


1^^^ 


ITDWARD  H.  WINCHHLL.  proprietor  of  a 
rp  livery  stable  in  Des  Plaiues.  was  born  in 
I  Northfield.  Cook  County,  on  the  13th  of 
Xoveml>er.  1.S43.  His  father.  Milo  Winchell.  was 
a  native  of  the  Empire  State,  boni  in  1802.  Af- 
ter arriving  at  years  of  maturity,  he  was  married, 
in  1S30.  to  Margaret  Edwards,  of  Philadelphia, 
and  they  Ijecame  the  parents  of  six  children,  two 
sons  and  four  daughters,  namely:  Ann:  Sarah 
J.,  deceased,  wife  of  Thomas  Vincent;  Caroline 
Louise  and  Harriet,  who  make  their  home  in 
Norwood  Park,  and  are  both  engaged  in  teaching 
in  the  public  .schools  of  Chicago:  Edward  H.. 
whose  name  heads  this  record:  and  Frank  AUsert, 
who  makes  his  home  in  New  York  Cit\  . 

From  the  public  .schools  of  his  native  town. 
Edward  Winchell  was  graduated.  To  his  father 
he  gave  the  benefit  of  his  ser\ices  until  twentv- 
one  vears  of  age.  when  he  l>egan  farming  for  him- 
self on  the  old  homestead,  where  he  had  been 
reared  to  manhood.  As  a  companion  and  help- 
mate on  life's  journey,  he  chose  Miss  Ann  Hook, 
a  native  of  Rome,  N.  V.  Their  union  was  cele- 
brated on  the  1 7th  of  May,  1869.  and  has  been 
blessed  with  a  family  of  five  children,  a  son  and 
four  daughters:  Maggie  Elizabeth,  wife  of  Mar- 
tin HoflFman,  of  Oak  Glen.  111.:  James  Guy.  who 
is  living  in  New  York  City:  Susie  May.  de- 
ceased: Amy  Eugenie,  now  at  home:  and  Olive 
Louise,  also  deceased.  The  mother  of  this  family 
was  called  to  her  final  rest  in  1889,  and  in  1891 
Mr.  Winchell  niarrietl  Mrs.  Alice  (  Day  t  Fickinger, 
a  native  of  Erie.  Pa. 

For    many    years  Mr.  Winchell  contimicd    the 
operation  of  the  old  homestead  farm,  which  com- 


prised two  hundred  acres  of  good  land  that  he 
placed  under  a  high  state  of  cultivation.     He  also 
made  many  im]irnvements  tliereon.  and  the  place 
Ijecame  one  of  the  fine  farms  of  the  c<>nununit>  ; 
but  in   1885  he  sold  out  and   removetl  to  the  vil- 
lage of  Nonvood.  where  he  made  his  home   until 
1.S89.     That  year  witnesseil    his  arrival    in    Des 
Plaines.  where  he  embarked  in  his  present  busi- 
ness.     He  nnis  a  fine  livery,  which  is  well  sup- 
plied with  everything  found  in  a  first-class  estab- 
lishment of  the  kind  and  enjo>s  a  liberal  patron- 
age from  the  pe  >ple  of  the  community.     This  is 
well  deser\'ed.  for  he  earnestly  desires  -to   plea.se 
his  customers.     S(xrially.    he   is   connected  with 
Gladiator  Lodge  No.  450,  K.  P..  of  which  he  was 
a  charter  member,  and  also  belongs    to    Keacon 
Light  Lodge  No.    784.   A.  F.  &  A.  M.      In  poli 
tics,  he  has  been   a  supf)orter  of  the    Democracv 
since  casting  his  first   Presidential  vote  for  Gen. 
George    B.     McClellan.      While    in     Northfield 
Township,  he  filled  the  offices  of  School   Director 
and  Highway  Commissioner.     By  an   honorable, 
upright  life,  Mr.  Winchell  has  won  universal  con- 
fidence and  the  good-will  of  the  entire  community. 
A  continuous  residence  in  Cook  County  of  half  a 
centur>-  entitles  him  to  the  satisfaction   of  being 
one  of  the  oldest  settlers  therein.     The  commun- 
itv  finds  in  him  a  valued  citizen,  who  is  ever  found 
in  the  front  ranks  of  any  enteri)rise  calculated  to 
advance  the  general  welfare. 


HAMES  C.  BARRY,  who  makes  his  home  in 
I  Des  Plaines.  and  is  filling  the  office  of  train- 
(2)  dispatcher  in  the  Chicago  &  Northwestern 
Railroad  office  at  Chicago,  is  a  native  of  Orleans 
Countv.  X.  Y.  He  was  bom  on  the  27th  of 
June.  iStKj,  and  is  a  son  of  Hezekiah  A.  and 
Laura  M.  ( Sergeant  1  Barry.  They  were  also 
natives  of  the  Empire  State,  their  marriage  being 
celebrated  in  1832.  The .  iK-came  the  parents  of 
seven  children,  four  sons  and  three  daughters,  as 
follows:  Alton,  now  deceased:  Ella,  wife  of  Irley 
F.  Plummer.  of  Caroline.  N.  Y.^  Lena,  wife  of 
Thomas  Turner,    who  is  living    in  New   York; 


398 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


James  C,  who  is  next  in  order  of  birth:  William 
A.,  an  operator  at  Crvstal  Lake,  111.:  Fremont 
H.,  who  is  station  agent  at  Fruita,  Colo.,  on  the 
Rio  Grande  &  Western  Railroad:  and  Louisa  M.. 
at  home. 

Mr.  Barr\-,  our  subject,  acquired  a  good  edu- 
cation in  the  common  schools  of  his  native  State, 
which  he  attended  until  seventeen  years  of  age. 
when  he  entered  upon  his  business  career.  He 
learned  telegraphy  at  Carlyon,  N.  Y..  in  a  rail- 
road office,  in  1878,  and  became  telegraph  oper- 
ator and  station  agent  at  Hess  Road,  Niagara 
County.  He  at  first  was  given  S30  per  month, 
but  the  company  kept  cutting  his  salar>-  down  by 
degrees  until  he  received  only  $20  per  month. 
His  work,  however,  was  increased  continually, 
instead  of  being  dimini.shed.  He  was  there  em- 
ployed for  thirteen  months,  and  then  engaged 
with  the  New  York  Central  &  Hudson  River 
Railroad,  working  as  operator  for  two  \ears  at 
Cuddebacks. 

In  1 88 1  Mr.  Barry  left  that  place  and  went  tt) 
Evanston,  111.,  where  he  ser\-ed  as  night  operator 
until  the  ist  of  January,  1882.  He  then  became 
station  agent  at  Rose  Hill,  where  he  continued 
until  the  ist  of  June  of  that  year,  when  he  went 
to  the  West.  For  two  years  he  continued  in  the 
West,  working  for  various  roads,  and  for  thirteen 
months  he  was  stationed  at  Palestine.  Tex.  He 
then  returned  to  Chicago  and  began  working  at 
Mavfair.  where  he  ser\-ed  as  operator  for  one 
year.  On  the  ist  of  October,  1S84,  he  came  to 
Des  Plaines  as  station  agent,  and  acceptably  filled 
that  jxjsition  here  until  Jaiuiary  24.  1888,  when 
he  entered  the  train  dispatcher's  office  of  the  Chi- 
cago &  Northwestern  Railroad  Company  at  Chi- 
cago. He  has  since  filled  the  position,  with  the 
exception  of  a  year  and  a-half  spent  in  the  West 
in  the  same  capacity  for  the  Rio  Grande  &  West- 
ern and  the  Great  Northern  Railroads. 

The  lady  who  now  bears  the  name  of  Mrs. 
Barr\"  was  in  her  maidenhood  Fannie  L.  Gray. 
Their  marriage  was  celebrated  at  Des  Plaines,  De- 
cember 6.  1885.  and  has  been  blessed  with  one 
daughter,  Gladys.  In  his  social  relations,  Mr. 
Barry  is  connected  with  the  Train  Dispatchers' 
Association  of  America,  and  belongs  to  Gladiator 


Lodge  No.  450,  K.  P..  of  which  he  is  a  char- 
ter member.  He  cast  his  first  Presidential  vote 
for  James  G.  Blaine,  and  is  a  stalwart  Republican 
in  politics.  Mr.  Barr>-  occupies  a  responsible 
position,  and  has  the  confidence  of  his  employers, 
which  he  has  won  by  prompt  and  faithful  dis- 
charge of  duty.  In  th.e  community  where  he  re- 
.sides  he  is  widely  and  favorably  knowti.  and  has 
a  larsje  circle  of  warm  friends. 


-=1. 


"^3 


^■^ 


ISi— ^ 


[^" 


r^HILIP  A.  PARSONS,  one  of  the  wide-awake 
L/'  and  enterprising  young  farmers  of  Cook 
|>5  County,  who  now  makes  his  home  in  Des 
Plaines,  has  the  honor  of  being  a  native  of  Illi- 
nois, his  birth  having  occurred  in  Lake  County, 
on  the  nth  of  December,  1866.  He  is  also  a 
representative  of  one  of  the  pioneer  families  of  the 
communit\-.  His  father,  Alfred  Parsons,  was 
lx)rn  in  Lewis  County,  N.  Y.,  April  6,  1810,  and 
was  a  -son  of  Stephen  and  Pena  Parsons.  He 
grew  to  manhood  in  the  Empire  State,  and  in 
1842  left  the  East,  coming  to  Cook  County,  where 
he  purchased  fourteen  hundred  and  forty  acres  of 
land  near  Des  Plaines,  belonging  to  the  Govern- 
ment. There  he  began  the  development  of  a 
fann.  In  1X44  he  chose  as  a  companion  and  help- 
mate on  life's  journe\'  Miss  Susan  H.  \'edder, 
daughter  of  Philip  and  Margaret  Yedder,  who 
were  also  pioneers  of  this  locality.  By  their  mar- 
riage they  became  the  parents  of  .seven  children, 
five  oi  whom  are  .still  living,  namely:  Ellen, 
Charles,  Albert,  Hattie  aud  Philip.  The  father 
was  a  prominent  and  well-known  citizen  of  this 
community,  and  his  death,  which  occurred  on 
the  6th  of  December,  1887,  was  widely  mourned. 
Philip  Parsons  was  the  youngest  of  the  family. 
With  his  parents  he  removed  from  Deerfield, 
Lake  County,  to  Des  Plaines,  in  October,  1871, 
when  not  quite  five  years  of  age.  He  began  his 
education  in  the  public  schools  of  Des  Plaines, 
and  afterwards  attended  the  Metropolitan  Busi- 
ness College  of  Chicago,  where  he  remained  for 
about  three  years,  completing  the  course  in  1887. 
Soon  after  his  return  home  his  father  died,  and 


James  C.  Hatch. 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


401 


the  care  and  management  of  a  two-hundred-acre 
farm  were  thrown  uix>n  his  shoulders.  He  was 
just  then  entering  manhood,  but  in  his  control  of 
aflfairs  he  soon  displayed  good  management  and 
executive  ability.  He  has  since  carrie<l  on  gen- 
eral farming  with  marked  success.  He  is  a  lover 
of  fine  hor.ses,  and  se\eral  good  ones  can  be  found 
in  his  stable. 

An  important  event  in  the  life  of  Mr.  Parsons 
occurred  on  the  7th  of  April,  1891.  when  was 
celebrated  his  marriage  with  Miss  K^nnua  Iv 
Easton.  of  Stockton.  Cal..  daughter  of  Andrew 
and  Rose  Easton.  Mr.  Parsons  has  recently 
completed  a  fine  residence  in  Des  Plaines.  and 
the  voung  couple  now  have  an  elegant  new  home, 
tastefully  furnished  and  supplied  with  all  the 
comforts  and  many  of  the  luxuries  of  life.  It  is 
also  the  abode  of  hospitality  and  good  cheer. 
Socially.  Mr.  Parsons  is  a  charter  member  of 
Gladiator  Lodge  No.  450,  K.  P.  He  cast  his 
first  Presidential  vote  for  Benjamin  Harrison  in 
1S8S.  and  is  a  .stanch  supporter  of  the  men  and 
measures  of  the  Republican  party.  Mr.  Parsons 
is  a  well-informed  man.  who  keeps  posted  on  all 
the  questions  of  the  day.  He  has  led  a  busy  life. 
and  his  career  has  been  an  upright  one,  so  that 
he  now  has  the  warm  regard  of  all  with  whom 
business  or  social  relations  have  brought  him  in 
contact. 


^AMES  C.  HATCH,  who  resides  on  section  2, 
I  Lisle  Township,  has  long  been  identified  with 
(2)  the  history  of  DuPage  County,  and  is  num- 
liered  among  the  honored  pioneers  who  braved  the 
hardships  of  frontier  life  to  make  a  home  in  this 
a>mmunity.  and  thus  iK-canie  the  founders  of 
the  county.  To  the  early  settlers  is  due  a  debt 
of  gratitude  which  can  never  be  repaid  for  the  part 
which  they  have  played  in  the  upbuilding  of  this 
commuuity. 

A  native  of  New  Hampshire.  Mr.  Hatch  was 
boni  Mav  27,  1806,  and  is  the  si.xth  in  a  family  of 
twelve  children,  whose  parents  were  Azel  and 
Rodv    I  Williams)    Hatch.     Five  of  the  number 


are  still  living,  namely:  James  C.  :Jedutham,  who 
is  living  in  Colorado:  Mrs.  Philena  Cook,  of  New 
York:  Reul>en.  a  resident  of  Oberlin,  Ohio:  and 
Azel,  who  is  still  living  on  the  old  homestead  in 
New  Hamp.shire.  The  father  of  this  family  was 
a  native  of  Connecticut,  and  when  a  small  child 
removed  with  his  parents  to  the  old  Granite 
State,  where  he  made  his  home  upon  a  farm  until 
called  to  his  final  rest,  at  the  advanced  age  of 
ninet>--three  years.  The  family  is  of  Engli.sh  lin- 
eage, but  for  two  generations  prior  to  Azel  had 
lived  in  the  United  States.  The  mother  of  our 
subject  always  lived  in  New  Hampshire,  and  her 
death  occurred  at  the  age  of  .sixty  \ears.  It  is  a 
fact  worthy  of  note  that  none  of  the  descendants 
of  the  above  family  were  ever  addicted  to  the  use 
of  liquor  or  tobacco. 

Until  sixteen  years  of  age  James  C.  Hatch  re- 
mained upon  the  home  farm,  and  then  left  the 
parental  roof  in  order  to  make  his  own  way  in  the 
world.  He  began  clerking  in  a  store,  and  was 
thus  employed  for  about  six  years.  He  then, 
with  the  capital  he  had  acquired  through  industry 
and  perseverance,  embarked  in  general  merchan- 
dising for  him.self  After  four  years  spent  along 
that  line,  he  sold  his  store  with  a  view  to  seek- 
ing a  home  and  fortune  in  the  West,  and  the  year 
1S33  witnessed  his  arrival  in  Illinois.  He  lf)cated 
upon  the  farm  where  he  now  resides,  becoming 
oneofthever\  first  settlers  of  DuPage  County. 
Even  Cook  County  was  sparsely  settled  at  that 
time,  and  the  World's  Fair  city  of  Chicago  was  a 
mere  handet.  Mr.  Hatch  located  a  claim,  but  it 
was  .several  years  licfore  the  Government  surv'ev 
was  made  and  the  land  came  into  market.  He 
e.\j>erienced  the  usual  hard.ships  and  privations  of 
pioneer  life,  and  performed  the  arduous  task  of 
developing  unbroken  land. 

In  June,  1837.  our  subject  married  Miss  Char- 
lotte I).  Kidder,  of  New  Hampshire,  whose  death 
occurred  on  the  old  homestead,  August  28,  1872. 
The  four  children  born  of  that  union  were  Louise 
E..  now  deceased:  lidward  P..  who  is  engaged  in 
business  in  Chicago:  Reuben,  deceased;  and  Azel, 
a  ver>-  prominent  lawyer  of  Chicago,  whose  sketch 
appears  elsewhere  in  this  volume. 

Mr.    Hatch  has   been  a  stanch    Republican    in 


20 


402 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


politics  since  the  organization  of  the  party.  His 
first  Presidential  vote  was  cast  for  John  Qnincy 
Adams.  He  has  taken  quite  an  active  interest  in 
political  affairs;  was  the  first  Town  Clerk,  ser\-ed 
his  township  as  Supervisor  in  an  early  day,  and 
took  the  census  of  the  county  in  1850.  He  was 
three  times  a  candidate  for  the  Legislature,  and 
was  also  nominated  for  the  office  of  Circuit  Clerk; 
but  as  that  was  in  the  day  when  the  Republican 
partv  was  in  the  minority,  he  was  in  consequence 
defeated. 

In  his  business  dealings.  Mr.  Hatch  has  been 
quite  successful,  and  as  the  years  have  passed, 
has  accumulated  a  handsome  competency,  which 
noiv  enables  him  to  live  retired  and  surrounds 
him  with  all  the  comforts  and  many  of  the  luxur- 
ies of  life.  He  has  always  kept  himself  well  in- 
formed on  matters  of  general  interest,  and  al- 
though he  is  now  eighty-seven  years  of  age.  he 
still  maintains  his  interest  in  public  affairs  and  in 
the  welfare  of  the  community.  From  an  early 
d«\  he  has  been  recognized  as  a  prominent  and 
influential  citizen,  whom  the  county  could  ill  af- 
ford to  lose,  and  his  honorable,  upright  career  has 
gained  him  a  host  of  warm  friends  and  won  him 
universal  confidence  and  esteem. 


^^-h^l 


1^ 


r"RAXK  WHITCOMB  is  proprietor  of  a 
1^  brickyard  in  Des  Plaines.  This  is  one  of 
I  the  leading  industries  of  the  town,  and  was 
established  in  1S68.  He  began  operations  on  a 
small  scale,  but  has  enlarged  his  facilities  to  keep 
up  with  his  increasing  trade.  He  now  receives  a 
liberal  patronage,  and  is  numbered  among  the 
successful  business  men  of  the  communitj-.  His 
life  record  is  as  follows: 

A  native  of  the  Empire  State,  Mr.  Whitcomb 
■was  bom  on  the  23d  of  March,  1830,  and  comes 
of  an  old  New  England  family.  His  father,  Mo- 
.ses  Whitcomb,  was  born  in  Connecticut,  on  the 
1 3th  of  August,  1787,  and  when  he  had  attained 
to  mature  years  was  joined  in  wedlock,  in  1826, 
with  Miss  Lucy  Pike.  Unto  them  were  bom 
four  sons,   but   Almon  and  Joshua,    formerly  of 


Cook  County,  are  now  deceased.  They  were  the 
eldest  and  the  youngest.  The  only  surviving 
brother  of  our  subject,  Albert  J.,  is  now  a  resi- 
dent of  Park  Ridge,  Cook  County. 

Mr.  Whitcomb  whose  name  heads  this  record 
received  ver\-  limited  educational  privileges  in 
the  common  schools  of  New  York ,  but  observation 
and  experience  have  made  him  a  well-infonned 
man.  He  left  home  at  the  early  age  of  eight 
>ears,  and  worked  upon  the  farm  for  his  board 
and  clothes  when  a  youth  of  thirteen  years. 
During  the  succeeding  eight  months  he  was  paid 
53  per  month,  and  during  the  next  season  he  re- 
ceived S4  per  month.  When  si.xteen  years  of  age 
his  wages  were  only  S6  per  month.  His  early 
lot  was  a  hard  one,  but  thereby,-  he  developed  a 
self-reliance  and  force  of  character  which  have 
proven  of  incalculable  benefit  to  him  in  his  later 
>ears.  When  a  youth  of  fifteen  years  he  emi- 
grated westward,  reaching  Cook  Count>-  in  Sep- 
tember. 1845.  In  1851  he  took  up  his  residence 
in   Niles. 

In  that  place,  on  the  15th  of  October,  1856, 
Mr.  Whitcomb  chose  as  a  companion  and  help- 
mate on  life's  journey  Miss  Elizabeth  Jones,  a 
native  of  Wales,  l^nto  them  have  been  born  six 
children,  two  sons  and  four  daughters,  but  three 
of  the  number  are  now  deceased.  Lucy  A.  died 
at  the  age  of  six  years;  Frank  E.,  at  the  age  of 
four  years;  and  Elizabeth,  at  the  age  of  two 
years.  Mar^-  is  now  the  wife  of  Albert  Parsons, 
of  Des  Plaines;  Elda  P.  is  engaged  in  teaching 
in  Park  Ridge;  and  George  M.  is  at  home. 

Mr.  Whitcomb  proudly  cast  his  first  Presiden- 
tial vote  for  John  C.  Fremont,  and  since  that 
time  has  been  an  inflexible  adherent  of  Re- 
publican principles.  For  twenty-one  years  he 
has  served  as  a  member  of  the  School  Board,  and 
the  cause  of  education  has  found  in  him  a  warm 
friend.  For  six  years  he  has  served  as  \'illage 
Trustee,  and  the  interests  of  the  town  have  never 
suffered  at  his  hands.  In  fact,  ever\-thing  that 
tends  to  benefit  or  upbuild  the  community  re- 
ceives his  support  and  co-operation.  From  the 
time  when,  as  a  little  boy,  he  worked  on  the  farm, 
he  has  Applied  himself  diligently  to  his  business, 
and  by  careful  attention  to  details  and  good  man- 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


403 


agement  he  has  achieved  a  success  which  now 
numbers  him  among  the  substantial  citizens  of 
this  community.  The  obstacles  and  difficulties 
in  his  path  he  overcame  by  determined  will,  and 
has  made  for  himself  an  exemplary  record. 


_=1 


^-f^ 


(S_ 


[^^ 


HENRY  SCHIERDING.  a  retired   merchant 
and  farmer  residing  in  Palatine,   is  one  of 
the  honored  old    settlers  of  Cook    County, 
who  has  made  his  home  within  its  borders  since 
1837.  and  has  been  numbered    among  the  sub- 
stantial and  enterprising  citizens  of  Palatine  for 
the  past  tventy  eight   years.     He   was   boni  in 
Hanover.   Germany.    Deceml>er,  15.    1824.     His 
father.  John  Schierding,  was  born  and  reared  in 
the   same   country,    and    there  followed  farming 
until   his  emigration   to  America,   in   1839.     He 
took  passage  on  a  sailing-vessel  at  Bremen,  and 
after  seven  weeks  spent  upon  the  Atlantic  reached 
his  destination,  anchor  being  dropped  in  the  har- 
borof  New  Yorkon  the8thof  July.  Hecamedirect 
to  the  West,  by  way  of  the  Erie  Canal.    Buffalo 
and  the  Great  Lakes,  and  joined  a  friend  in  Chi- 
cago, who  had  come  to  America  some  years  pre- 
\-ious.     Mr.  Schierding  purchased  three  acres  of 
land,  which  is  now  within  the  heart  of  the  city, 
and  bsgan  working  on  the  canal,  where  he  was 
employed  for  two  years,  when  he  sold  out  and  re- 
moved to  the  townof  Shaumburgh,  where  he  pur- 
chased a  claim,  entering  the  same  when  the  land 
came  into  market.    He  then  opened  up  a  farm,  on 
which   he  spent   his   remaining   \ears.  his  death 
occurring  in  1887,  at  the  advanced  age  o<  ninety- 
one  years.     His  wife  had    passed  away  .several 
vears  previous.     Both  were  buried  in  the  famih- 
cemeter>-.  where  a  substantial  monument  marks 
their  last  resting-place. 

Our  subject  spent  his  youth  in  the  land  of  his 
birth.  He  received  good  school  advantages  in 
his  native  language,  but  is  wholly  self-educated 
in  English.  He  was  a  young  man  of  seventeen 
years  when  the  family  came  to  the  New  World. 
For  about  a  year  he  was  employed  by  "Long" 
John  Wcntworth.  who  was  a  prominent  figure  in 


tlK-  liiston.  of  the  community  for  many  years. 
Mr.  Schierding  next  began  working  on  the  canal 
with  his  father,  and  with  him  removed  to  Shaum- 
burgh Township,  where  he  aided  in  developing 
and  improving  a  farm.  There  he  continued  un- 
til twenty-three  years  of  age,  when  he  l)egan 
fanning  for  hiniself  He  purchased  twenty -three 
acres  of  land  in  Shaumburgh  Township,  and  in  the 
course  of  time  transformed  the  raw  tract  into 
richly  cultivated  fields.  He  al.so  extended  the 
boundaries  of  his  homestead  until  he  owned  four 
hundred  acres  of  valuable  land,  under  a  high  state 
of  cultivation,  and  comprising  one  of  the  best 
farms  in  the  neighborhood.  There  he  made  his 
home  until  1.S67,  when  he  sold  out  and  removed 
to  Palatine,  where  he  Imilt  a  store  and  began 
dealing  in  general  merchandi.se.  He  continued 
in  active  business  until  1S83.  since  which  time  he 
has  lived  retired.  He  also  improved  .several  res- 
idence properties.  He  has  prospered  in  his  un- 
dertakings, for  he  carries  forward  to  a  successful 
completion  whatever  he  attempts.  He  cotnmenced 
life  a  poor  boy,  empty-handed,  but  by  his  own 
industry-  and  good  management  he  has  accumu- 
lated a  valuable  estate  and  secured  an  elegant 
home. 

On  the  1 6th  of  May.  1847,  in  Shaumburgh 
Township.  Mr.  Schierding  married  Miss  Rebecca 
Slade,  a  native  of  Cook  County.  Her  death  oc- 
curred October  20,  1867.  They  had  six  children, 
of  whom  three  died  in  early  childhood.  Those 
living  are  John  H..  who  is  engaged  in  business 
in  Palatine:  Sarah  S.,  wife  of  Thomas  Catlow,  of 
Chicago;  and  Mary  J.,  wife  of  Dr.  E.  F.  Wad- 
kins,  of  Chicago.  On  the  ist  of  August,  1868, 
Mr.  Schierding  wedded  Henrietta  Mather,  who 
was  born,  reared  and  educatetl  in  Gennan> . 
Their  children  are  William  P..  who  is  pursuing 
a  course  of  medicine:  and  Matilda  and  Alma  J., 
who  are  still  at  home.  One  child  of  this  union 
also  died  in  early  life.  The  members  of  the  fam- 
ily all  belong  to  the  Evangelical  Church. 

In   politics.    Mr.    Schierding    was    formerly    a 

j    Democrat,   and  supported   the  candidate  of  that 

I   party   in    i860.     In   1S64  he  voted  for  Abraham 

Lincoln,  and  has  since  l>een  identified   with  the 

j   Republican  part>  .      He  takes  quite  an  interest  in 


404 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


local  politics,  and  has  been  elected  to  and  served 
in  a  number  of  official  positions  of  honor  and 
trust.  He  was  elected  Justice  of  the  Peace  on 
the  organization  of  the  township,  and  has  held 
the  office  for  forty  consecutive  years.  At  the 
last  election,  in  1893,  he  received  ever>-  vote  cast 
in  the  township,  with  one  exception — his  own; 
hut  he  did  not  wish  to  serve  longer  on  account  of 
his  age,  and  in  consequence  refused  to  qualify. 
He  has  also  served  as  Township  Clerk,  County 
Trustee,  and  was  Notary  Public  for  t wen t.\- -eight 
years.  In  whatever  position  he  has  filled  he  has 
always  made  a  faithful  and  efficient  officer.  He 
has  also  been  a  delegate  to  numerous  official  con- 
ventions. Mr.  .Schierdiug  is  a  warm  friend  of 
the  public  schools,  and  ever  gives  his  hearty  sup- 
port to  the  cause  of  education.  He  is  a  Royal 
Arch  Ma.son,  and  of  the  order  has  been  a  member 
for  thirty-five  years. 

Mr.  Schierdiug  has  been  a  resident  of  Cook 
County  for  the  long  period  of  fifty-.seven  years, 
and  has  witnes.sed  almost  the  entire  growth  of 
the  city  of  Chicago.  He  saw  it  when  it  was 
composed  of  a  few  log  cabins  on  a  wet  and  uncul- 
tivated prairie,  and  has  watched  the  wonderful 
changes  that  have  made  it  the  metropolis  of  the 
West  and  the  second  city  in  the  I'nion.  He  is 
well  known  in  Chicago  and  throughout  the  coun- 
ty, and  well  deser\'es  mention  in  this  volume. 
He  is  a  man  of  tried  integrity  and  upright  char- 
acter, and  has  the  confidence  of  all  who  know 
him.  He  and  his  estimable  wife  are  highly  re- 
spected, and  we  feel  as-^ured  that  their  many 
friends  will^be  glad  to  peruse  this  record  of  their 
lives. 

jILLIAM  HAMMERSCHMIDT,  one  of  the 
successful  business  men  of  Lombard,  who  is 
engaged  in  brick-making,  was  born  near 
Naperville,  DuPage  County,  October  10,  1853, 
and  is  a  son  of  Adolph  and  Adeline  ( Von  Oven  ) 
Hammerschmidt.  His  father  was  born  in  Altann. 
Prussia,  and  was  a  son  of  a  minister  of  the  Reformed 
Lutheran  Church.  In  1848,  he  came  to  Amer- 
ica, after    ha\-ing  serA-ed   for  one  year  as  a  Lieu- 


tenant in  the  Prus.sian  army.  Coming  to  the 
West,  he  settled  on  a  farm  near  Naperville,  where 
he  still  resides.  His  wife  was  born  near  Diesseldorf, 
Prussia,  and  crossed  the  Atlantic  in  1852.  On 
landing  in  New  York,  she  was  met  by  Mr.  Ham- 
merschmidt and  they  were  there  married.  They 
were  the  parents  of  eleven  children:  William :  Mary : 
Ernst,  deceased;  Lizzie:  Anna,  deceased;  Clara, 
wife  of  A.  Baltzer,  of  Sandusky,  Ohio;  Max  P". ; 
Freda;  Richard:  Lydia;  and  Martha,  deceased. 
The  father  of  this  family  is  still  hale  and  hearty, 
although  he  has  now  reached  the  age  of  sixty- 
-seven.  He  is  interested  with  his  sons  in  business, 
but  has  always  given  his  attention  chiefly  to  the 
development  of  his  farm.  In  politics,  he  was  for- 
merly a  Whig,  but  since  the  organization  of  the 
Republican  party  has  been  one  of  its  stalwart  sup- 
porters. He  has  never  sought  nor  accepted  of 
fice. 

The  gentleman  whose  name  heads  this  record 
attended  the  district  schools,  and  afterwards  .spent 
two  terms  in  Naperville  College,  where  he  com- 
pleted his  education.  When  a  young  man  of 
twenty-four,  he  came  to  Lombard  and  purcha.sed 
a  clay-pit.  Here  he  built  a  small  tile  facton,-  and 
began  the  manufacture  of  tile.  The  business  has 
since  grown  to  extensive  proportions,  and  he  is 
also  now  engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  brick. 
He  receives  from  the  surrounding  country  a  lib- 
eral j)atroiiage,  and  his  large  trade  yields  him  a 
good  income.  Since  the  spring  of  1893,  he  has 
been  carrying  on  a  grain  elevator  and  deals  in 
coal,  feed,  etc. 

On  March  30,  1882,  Mr.  Hammerschmidt  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Elizabeth  Burdorf  who 
was  born  near  Hanover,  Germany,  and  came  to 
America  in  1875.  Five  children  have  blessed 
their  union:  Adolph,  Dora,  Adalina,  Bernhard  and 
Alfred.  The  parents  are  both  members  of  the 
Lutheran  Evangelical  Church  at  Elmhurst,  and 
are  people  of  prominence,  who  hold  an  enviable 
position  in  the  social  circles  in  which  they  move. 

Mr.  Hammerschmidt  is  a  member  of  the  Mod- 
ern Woodmen  of  America,  and  in  politics  he  is  one 
of  the  stalwart  supporters  of  Republican  princi- 
ples. He  is  now  ser\-ing  as  Supervisor  of  York 
Township.     For  twelve  years  he  sened  as  School 


W.M.     H.\.MMi:KSClIMn)T. 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


405 


Director,  and  has  held  other  local  offices,  the  du- 
ties of  which  have  l>eeu  promptly  and  faithfully 
dischargetl.  He  is  a  conservative  and  successful 
bu.sine.ss  man,  whf)  through  well-directed  efforts, 
good  management  and  enterprise  has  worketl  his 
way  upward  to  the  head  of  a  large  business,  and 
acquired  a  handsome  competency  thereby. 

>[3— o 9 


"SI 


Ei:ORGE  TAYLOR  is  one  of  the  enterprising 
and  successful  grocers  of  Evanston.  He  has 
a  wide  acquaintance,  and  we  feel  assured 
that  this  record  of  his  life  will  prove  of  interest  to 
mauy  of  our  readers.  He  claims  Michigan  as  the 
State  of  his  nativity,  his  birth  having  occurred  in 
Muskegon,  on  the  i8th  of  January,  1856.  His 
parents  were  Thomas  and  Keziah  ( Wilson  1  Tay- 
loi .  the  former  a  native  of  England,  and  the  lat- 
ter of  Ireland.  They  had  but  two  children,  sons, 
George  and  Joseph.  The  father  was  a  lumber- 
man in  Mu,skegon  and  one  of  its  pioneer  settlers. 
He  crossed  the  Atlantic  from  London,  England, 
to  Canada,  and  from  there  made  his  way  to 
Muskegon,  where  he  died  at  the  early  age  of 
thirty -five  years.  His  father,  however,  reached  a 
very  advanced  age.  The  maternal  grandfather. 
Joseph  Wilson,  also  departed  this  life  when  well 
ad\anced  in  years.  He  was  a  native  of  the  Em- 
erald Isle,  and  emigrated  to  Canada,  where  he  car- 
ried on  busine.ss  as  a  contractor.  He  built  the 
first  wharf  in  that  country-.  The  mother  of  our 
subject  sunived  her  husband  for  a  number  of 
years,  and  was  a  second  time  married.  Mr.  Tay- 
lor was  an  Episcopalian  in  religious  belief,  and  his 
wife  belonged  to  the  Methodist  Church. 

The  first  four  years  of  George  Taylor's  life 
were  spent  in  his  native  cit>-.  He  was  then  taken 
by  his  mother  to  Canada,  for  his  father  had  died 
the  previous  year.  He  was  reared  and  educated 
in  Coburg.  Ontario,  Canada,  and  then  began 
clerking  for  his  mother  in  a  gr(x:er>-.  It  was 
in  1879  that  he  again  came  to  t^e  United  States, 
locating  in  Chicago,  but  after  three  months  he 
came  to  Evanston.  where  he  .secured  a  position  as 
clerk  in  the  store  of  Mr.  Hoag.     After  ser\ing  as 


salesman  for  four  years,  he  bought  out  the  busi- 
ness, which  he  has  since  conducted  in  his  own 
interest. 

On  the  3d  of  September,  1890,  was  celebrated 
the  marriage  of  Mr.  Taylor  and  Miss  Cora  Belle 
Kmder.  daughter  of  Joseph  Kinder.  They  have 
one  daughter,  Florence  Marie.  Mr.  Taylor  is  a 
Methodist,  and  his  wife  belongs  to  the  Christian 
Church.  He  is  also  associated  with  Evans  Lodge 
No.  524,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.;  Evans  Chapter  No. 
144.  R.  A.  M.;  and  Commanden-  No.  58,  K.  T. 
He  likewise  belongs  to  the  Odd  Fellows'  frater- 
nity. 

In  his  political  views.  Mr.  Taylor  is  a  Demo- 
crat, and  has  been  honored  with  various  ofiices  of 
public  tru.st  in  this  city.  He  now  does  a  large 
business  in  Evanston,  and  has  landed  interests  in 
California.  He  may  truly  be  called  a  self-made 
man.  for  he  received  no  financial  aid  from  any 
source.  Entirely  by  his  own  efforts,  he  has 
worked  his  way  upward,  and  for  his  success  in  life 
he  deserves  much  credit.  Through  clerking  he 
acquired  the  means  to  purchase  his  store,  and  by 
careful  attention  to  the  details  of  his  business  and 
an  earnest  desire  to  please  his  customers,  he  has 
secured  a  liberal  patronage. 


e. 


l^+^l 


EHARLES  S.  CUTTING  is  a  well  known 
resident  of  Palatine  and  a  lawyer  of  promi- 
nence, who  is  engaged  in  the  practice  of  his 
cho.sen  profession  in  the  city  of  Chicago.  He  is 
so  well  known  in  the  metropolis  and  throughout 
the  community,  that  he  needs  no  special  introduc- 
tion to  our  readers,  but  we  know  the  record  of 
his  life  will  prove  of  interest  to  many  of  them. 
A  native  of  Vermont,  he  was  born  in  Highland. 
Franklin  County,  on  the  ist  of  March,  1854. 
His  father,  who  tore  the  name  of  Charles  A. 
Cutting,  was  a  native  of  New  Hamp.shire.  and  in 
the  Granite  State  grew  to  manhootl  and  married 
Miss  Laura  IC.  Averill,  a  native  of  Vennont.  The 
Cutting  family  is  of  English  origin,  and  its  repre- 
sentatives were  numbered  among  the  pioneer  set- 
tlers of  New  Hampshire.      In  1863,   the  father  of 


4o6 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


our  subject  removed  to  Minnesota,  locating  in 
Hastings,  where  he  engaged  in  the  hotel  business 
for  about  five  years.  He  then  removed  to  Salem, 
Ore.,  where  he  again  carried  on  a  hotel  for  a 
short  time,  but  after  a  j'ear  he  changed  his  place 
of  residence  to  Cedar  Rapids,  Iowa,  coming  thence 
to  Palatine,  111.,  in  1874.  After  several  years' 
residence  here  he  removed  to  Rankin,  Vermilion 
County,  where  he  spent  the  last  years  of  his  life, 
pa.ssing  away  in  1890.  His  wife  still  survives 
him,  and  now  resides  with  her  son  in  Palatine. 

Charles  S.  Cutting  has  lived  in  the  extreme  ; 
eastern  and  extreme  western  part  of  this  country — 
in  Vermont  and  in  Oregon — but  the  greater  part 
of  his  boyhood  was  passed  in  Minnesota  and  Iowa, 
and  much  of  his  maturer  life  in  Cook  County. 
He  has  thus  long  been  identified  with  the  interests 
of  theMissi.ssippi  \'alley.  His  education  was  ac- 
quired in  the  High  School  of  Hastings,  Minn., 
and  the  Willamette  I'liiversity  of  Oregon.  After 
completing  his  studies  in  that  institution,  he  went 
to  Cedar  Rapids,  Iowa,  where  he  began  newspa- 
per work,  being  employed  on  the  Cedar  Rapids 
Times  for  about  a  year  and  a-half  In  1874,  when 
a  young  man  of  twenty  years,  he  came  with  his 
parents  to  Palatine,  and  soon  after  engaged  in 
teaching  in  its  public  .schools.  He  was  elected 
Principal  and  for  si.x  years  followed  that  profes- 
sion, winning  the  high  commendation  of  all  con- 
cerned, for  he  was  an  able  educator. 

In  the  mean  time,  Mr.  Cutting  devoted  his  va- 
cations and  leisure  hours  to  reading   law,    and  in 

1879  was  admitted  to  the  Bar.      In  the  autumn  of 

1880  he  opened  an  office  in  Chicago,  at  No.  162 
Washington  Street,  and  embarked  in  the  practice 
of  his  profe.ssion.  Later,  he  formed  a  partner- 
ship with  Judge  Williamson,  which  continued 
until  the  death  of  the  Judge.  He  has  now  been 
in  active  law  practice  in  Chicago  for  thirteen 
years,  and  has  built  up  a  fine  business.  He  has 
been  connected  with  some  very  important  cases, 
but  devotes  his  energies  more  especially  to  chan- 
cery and  probate  business. 

On  the  27th  of  June,    1876,   in  Palatine,  was 
celebrated  the  marriage  of  Mr.  Cutting  and  Miss 
Anna  E.   Lytle,  who  was  born  in  Palatine,   and   1 
was  educated  in  its  public  schools,  and  in  the  Cook   I 


County  Normal.  She  engaged  in  teaching  in  her 
native  town  both  before  and  after  her  marriage. 
One  son  has  been  born  to  them,  Robert  W.  Thev 
have  an  elegant  home  in  Palatine,  which  is  the 
abode  of  ho.spitality,  and  its  atmo.sphere  is  one  of 
culture  and  refinement.  They  have  a  large  circle 
of  warm  friends  and  agreeable  acquaintances,  and 
hold  a  high  position  in  .social  circles. 

Since  casting  his  fir.st  Presidential  vote  for  Hon. 
Rutherford  B.  Hayes,  in  1876,  Mr  Cutting  has 
been  identified  with  the  Republican  party,  and  is 
a  warm  advocate  of  its  men  and  measures.  He 
has  never  been  an  a.spirant  for  ofiice,  but  was 
elected  and  .served  as  Master  in  Chancery,  and  is 
now  serving  as  a  member  of  the  County  Board  of 
Education.  During  1892  he  was  its  President, 
and  is  now  President  of  the  Town  Board  of  Eiduca- 
tion.  Socially,  he  is  a  Knight  Templar  Mason, 
and  belongs  to  the  Oriental  Consistory  of  Chicago. 
He  has  served  as  a  Ma.ster  of  the  Blue  Lodge  of 
Palatine,  and  has  been  its  representative  in  the 
Grand  Lodge.  He  also  belongs  to  the  Independ- 
ent Order  of  Odd  Fellows.  He  is  a  man  of  su- 
perior legal  ability,  of  high  moral  character,  and 
is  an  enterprising  citizen,  whose  well-spent  life 
has  won  him  a  place  among  the  best  people  of  the 
connnunity  in  which  he  has  now  made  his  home 
for  twentv-one  vears. 


3^'T"S&=*= 


r"REDERICK  HATCH,  who  carries  on  gen- 
1^  eral  farming  on  section  2,  Lisle  Township, 
I  is  a  worthy  representative  of  one  of  the  hon- 
ored pioneer  families  of  DuPage  County.  The 
family  is  of  English  extraction  on  both  the  pa- 
ternal and  maternal  sides.  The  father,  Luther 
Hatch,  was  born  in  New  Hampshire,  was  reared 
to  manhood  upon  a  farm,  and  on  attaining  his 
majority  bade  adieu  to  the  Granite  State  and  em- 
igrated to  Michigan.  He  there  married  Polly 
Howe,  and  in  1832  they  came  to  Illinois,  locat- 
ing on  wild  land  where  the  town  of  Lisle  now 
stands.  Soon  after  his  arrival  in  this  State,  Mr. 
Hatch  was  called  upon  to  mourn  the  loss  of  his 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


407 


wife.  Ill  iN.^N,  he  married  Luiira  Kidder,  a  na- 
tive of  New  Hannisliire.  Luther  Halcli  carried 
on  fanning  on  that  hiiul  until  i'*<43,  when  he  sold 
his  first  place  and  purchased  a  fliriii  on  section  2, 
where  our  subject  now  resides.  There  he  re- 
mained until  his  death,  which  occurred  in  1S52, 
at  the  age  of  forty-eight  years.  He  was  a  member 
of  the  Whig  part\ ,  took  ([uite  an  interest  in  pol- 
itics, and  was  one  of  the  leading  and  intlueiitial 
citizens  of  his  township  in  an  earl>-  day.  After 
his  death  Mrs.  Hatch  became  the  wife  of  B.  F.  Mor- 
rison, and  removed  to  Central  City,  Iowa,  where 
she  departed  this  life  at  the  age  of  sixty-two 
years. 

Frederick  Hatch  is  the  eldest  in  a  family  of 
three  children,  all  sons.  Ezra  K.,  the  next  in 
order  of  birth,  is  engaged  in  the  banking  bu.si- 
ness,  merchandising  and  stock-dealing  in  Central 
City,  Iowa.  Augustus  L..  the  youngest,  is  also  \ 
a  prominent  business  man  of  that  place. 

Mr.  Hatch  whose  name  heads  this  record  | 
was  boni  in  Lisle  Township.  February  5,  1839, 
and  midst  play  and  work  his  bo\hood  days  were 
pas.sed.  He  remained  upon  the  home  farm  until 
seventeen  years  of  age,  and  liecamc  familiar  with 
all  the  duties  of  farm  life.  He  then  spent  the 
sunnner  in  work  in  the  fields,  and  through  the  I 
winter  sea.son  engaged  in  teaching  school  for 
about  nine  years.  With  the  capital  he  had  thus 
acquired  he  purchased  the  old  homestead  and 
engaged  in  farming  for  hitnself,  which  pursuit 
he  has  followed  continuoush-  since  with  good 
success. 

On  the  1 2th  of  October,  1862,  Mr.  Hatch  wed- 
ded Miss  Hannah  Hurtis,  of  Central  City,  Iowa, 
who  died  in  1S67.  leavin.g  two  children:  Freder- 
ick B.,  who  is  now  deceased;  and  Luther  A.,  who 
is  Principal  of  one  of  the  ward  .schools  of  Mo- 
line,  111.  On  the  loth  of  March,  1868,  Mr. 
Hatch  was  again  married,  his  second  union  being 
with  Miss  Annie  Ott,  a  native  of  this  county. 
Their  union  has  been  bles.sed  with  six  children: 
Frank  W.,  a  prosperous  farmer  of  Iowa;  Clarence 
R.,  also  an  agriculturist  of  the  Hawkeye  State; 
Rosie  L.  and  Harriet,  who  are  engaged  in  teach- 
ing school  in  DuPage  County;  Harry,  a  well-ed- 
ucated young  man,  who  aids  in   the  operation  of 


the  lu)ine  fariii;   and  Mabel,  who  i>  .lUiuding  the 
High  School  in  Downer's  Grove. 

The  farm  which  Mr.  Hatch  owns  and  operates 
compri.ses  one  luindred  and  forty  acres  of  good 
land,  and  in  connection  with  its  cultivation  he  car- 
ries on  the  dairy  busine.ss,  keeping  twenty-five 
cows  for  this  purpose.  He  also  owns  a  valuable 
farm  of  two  hundred  acres  in  Linn  County,  Iowa, 
and  his  p)o.sses.sions  have  been  acquired  almost  en- 
tirely through  his  own  efforts,  being  the  reward 
of  his  indu.stry  and  perseverance.  In  politics, 
Mr.  Hatch  is  a  supporter  of  Republican  princi- 
ples. He  has  served  as  Supervisor  one  year,  as 
Highway  Commis.sioner  for  twenty-five  years, 
and  for  a  number  of  \ears  has  been  School  Di- 
rector. In  his  religious  belief  he  is  a  Congrega- 
tionali.st.  On  all  the  issues  of  the  day  he  keeps 
himself  well  informed,  and  is  an  intelligent  and 
public-spirited  citizen,  who  has  won  the  confidence 
and  respect  of  the  communitv.  His  entire  life 
has  here  been  pa.ssed,  and  he  has  seen  Du- 
Page Couiit\-  transformed  from  an  almost  un- 
broken wilderness  into  one  of  the  garden  spots  of 
Illinois.  Among  its  pioneer  settlers  we  gladly 
give  him  a  place  in  this  volume. 


1^^-^ 


[=_ 


(=^ 


oP.HRT    NIGHTINGALE    was    for    many 
vears  numbered  among  the  leading  farmers 


R 

PX  ot  Cook  County,  but  he  has  now  laid  aside 
Inusiness  cares  and  is  living  retired  in  Barrington. 
A  native  of  England,  he  was  born  in  Cambridge- 
shire, January  14,  1829,  and  was  there  reared  and 
educated.  He  entered  upon  his  bu.siness  career 
as  clerk  in  a  grocery  .store,  where  he  remained 
for  about  two  and  a-half  years.  He  then  deter- 
mined to  seek  a  home  and  fortune  lieyond  the  At- 
lantic, and  in  1851  cros-sed  the  briny  deep  to  the 
New  World.  He  took  passage  on  a  westward- 
bound  .sailing-ve.ssel  from  Liverpool,  and  after  a 
pleasant  voyage  of  four  weeks  anchor  was  drop- 
fied  in  the  harbor  of  New  York. 

Mr.  Nightingale  came  West  by  way  of  the 
Hudson  River  to  Albany,  by  rail  to  Buffalo, 
acro.ss  the  Lakes  to  Detroit,  by  rail   to  New   Buf- 


4o8 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


falo,  Mich.,  and  thence  across  Lake  Michigan  to 
Chicago.  The  following  summer  he  began  farm- 
ing. In  the  winter  of  1852,  he  went  to  Michigan, 
where  he  worked  in  the  pineries,  returning  the 
following  spring  to  resume  agricultural  pursuits. 
Thus  he  spent  the  time  for  two  or  three  years. 
As  a  companion  and  helpmate  on  life's  journey, 
he  chose  Miss  Anna  Leavitt,  a  native  of  Cam- 
bridgeshire, England,  and  a  daughter  of  John 
Leavitt.  Her  father  emigrated  with  his  family 
to  Cook  County,  but  afterwards  went  to  Nebra.ska. 
where  his  last  days  were  spent. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Nightingale  were  reared  together 
as  boy  and  girl,  and  their  marriage  was  cele- 
brated in  Chicago,  .September  28,  1858.  They 
began  their  domestic  life  upon  a  rented  fann, 
which  our  subject  continued  to  operate  for  five 
\ears,  when  he  purchased  and  broke  fortj-  acres 
of  land.  He  al.so  rented  an  eighty-acre  tract  ad- 
joining, but  after  a  year  sold  his  first  purchase 
and  bought  ninety  acres,  whereon  he  made  his 
home  for  three  years.  He  then  again  .sold  and 
bought  one  hundred  acres,  but  three  years  later 
he  again  disposed  of  his  fann.  His  next  pur- 
chase comprised  two  hundred  acres  of  good  land, 
upon  which  he  erected  a  fine  large  residence, 
good  barns  and  made  other  substantial  improve- 
ments. There  he  made  his  home  for  ten  years, 
when  he  sold  and  became  the  owner  of  a  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  acre  farm,  on  which  his  son  now  re- 
sides. He  bought  his  present  home  in  Barring- 
ton,  and  has  .since  lived  in  this  place. 

To  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Nightingale  were  born  six 
children  William,  a  substantial  farmer  of  Bar- 
rington  Township;  Elizabeth  A.,  a  teacher  of  rec- 
ognized ability  in  this  county ;  Florence,  who  was 
married  and  located  in  Lincoln,  Neb.,  where  her 
death  occurred  in  January,  1893:  Anna,  wife  of 
Edwin  Cox,  of  Kane  County,  111.:  Robert  Lin- 
coln, who  holds  a  responsible  position  in  the  post- 
office  at  Chicago,  and  married  Bertha  Sawyer,  of 
Barrington,  by  whom  he  has  one  child,  Marie: 
and  George  \V.,  who  resides  in  Barrington,  but 
is  employed  in  Chicago. 

Mr.  Nightingale  began  life  for  himself  empty- 
handed,  but  has  steadily  worked  his  way  upward, 
becoming  the  possessor  of  a  comfortable  compe- 


tence. He  max  truly  be  called  a  self-made  man. 
and  his  example  is  well  worthy  of  emulation. 
Since  casting  his  fir.st  Presidential  vote  for  John 
C.  Fremont  in  1S56,  he  has  been  a  stalwart  advo- 
cate of  Republican  principles,  and  has  frequently 
ser\-ed  as  a  delegate  to  the  count\-  and  congress- 
ional conventions.  For  .six  years  he  served  as 
Highway  Commi.s.sioner  and  has  also  .served  as 
Township  Treasurer,  discharging  his  duties  with 
promptness  and  fidelity.  The  cause  of  education 
finds  in  him  a  warm  friend,  as  do  all  enterpri.ses 
which  are  calculated  to  promote  the  general  wel- 
fare and  advance  the  best  interests  of  the  city  and 
countv . 


b<"'T'Vd 


mCOTT  R.  HIBBARD  has  for  almost  forty 
/N  >ears  been  in  the  employ  of  what  is  now  the 
vjjf  Northwestern  Railroad  Company,  and  his 
record  as  a  railroad  man  is  an  honorable  one. 
His  long-continued  service  indicates  his  fidelity  to 
dut\'  and  his  prompt  perfonnance  of  the  ta.sks 
that  fell  to  his  lot.  The  histor>-  of  his  life  and 
work  is  as  follows: 

A  native  of  Ma.s.sachu.setts,  Mr.  Hibbard  was 
born  in  Pittsfield  on  the  yth  of  vSeptember,  1835, 
and  is  a  son  of  Horace  A.  and  Chloe  (Barker) 
Hibbard.  He  comes  of  an  old  New  England 
family,  the  ancestry  of  which  is  lo.stin  the  remote 
regions  of  antiquity.  His  father  was  a  wheel- 
wright and  carpenter,  and  followed  that  business 
for  many  years.  Scott  R.  lived  in  New  England 
until  twenty  years  of  age,  and  was  educated  in 
Pittsfield,  the  well-known  Prof.  Tenney  being  his 
la.st  teacher.  At  the  age  of  twenty  he  came  to 
Chicago  and  entered  the  employ  of  the  old  Ga 
lena  &  Chicago  Union  Railroad  Company,  the 
predecessor  of  the  Northwestern  Company.  His 
connection  with  that  road  has  continued  through 
all  the  inten-ening  years  up  to  the  present  time. 
For  fourteen  years  of  this  period  he  was  with  the 
Pullman  Palace  Car  Company'  as  superintendent 
of  the  sleeping  cars  on  the  Northwestern.  He 
has  been  in  the  operating  department  of  the  road 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


4D9 


constantly.  While  in  the  East  lit  served  an  ap- 
prenticeship as  a  machinist,  and  although  he  has 
never  followetl  the  business,  the  knowledge  there 
gained  has  proved  of  serv'ice  to  him  in  his  railroad 
life.  At  present  he  is  sending  as  watchman  in 
the  main  building  of  the  Northwestern  Railroad. 

In  1S72  was  celebrated  the  marriage  of  Mr. 
Hibbard  and  Miss  Amelia  Klager,  who  was  of 
Gennan  extraction.  Her  parents  came  from 
P^quiminda.  and  her  father  wa.s  a  slu>emaker.  I'nto 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hibbard  have  been  lx)rn  six  chil- 
dren, three  sons  and  three  daughters,  as  follows: 
Sidney  Monroe.  Selma  .\melia.  Walter  Scott, 
(»race  C  Olive  and  Horace  Allen. 

Mr.  Hibbard  has  a  comfortable  home  in  Park 
Ridge,  situated  in  the  midst  of  ten  acres  of  land, 
where  he  lives  contentedly  with  his  family,  to 
whose  interests  he  is  eiitirel>-  devoted.  He  is  a 
member  of  the  National  I'nion.  and  al.so  of  the 
Congregational  Church.  In  politics,  he  is  a  true- 
blue  Republican,  unswer\'ing  in  his  allegiance  to 
the  party  with  which  he  has  long  lieen  identified. 
He  is  alwa>s  true  to  whatever  he  profes.ses  an  at- 
tachment for.  as  is  shown  by  his  faithfulness  to  his 
party  and  employers. 


^^^1 


0RRINGTON  LUNT  is  the  founder  of  Evans- 
ton,  the  founder  of  the  Northwestern  I'ni- 
versity,  and  has  been  one  of  the  important 
factors  in  the  upbuilding  of  Chicago.  In  the  days 
of  the  infancy  of  the  city,  he  cast  in  his  lot  with 
its  settlers,  and  his  interests  have  since  Ijeen  con- 
nected with  theirs.  Manv  monuments  to  his 
hatidiwork  still  stand,  and  the  history  of  Cook 
County  would  be  an  incomplete  volume  without 
the  record  of  his  life.  He  was  born  December  24, 
1815,  in  Bowdoinham,  Me.  His  father,  William 
Lunt,  was"a  leading  merchant  of  that  place,  and 
represented  his  district  in  the  State  Legislature. 
He  was  a  direct  descendant  of  Henry  Lunt,  of 
Newbur\-port,  Mass.,  who emigrateti  to  the  United 
States  from  England  in  1635.  The  mother  of  our 
subject  died  when  he  was  ten  years  old,  and  his 
father  afterwards  married  again.      He  lived  to  a 


ripe  old  age,  and   both   he  and  his  second  wife 
died  Decemljer  31,  1863. 

Mr.  Lunt  of  this  sketch  attende<l  the  public 
and  private  schixils  of  his  native  town,  and  in  his 
fourteenth  year  entered  his  father's  store,  serving 
as  clerk  until  he  attained  his  majority,  when  he 
was  admitteti  to  partnership.  They  safely  pas.sed 
through  the  financial  panic  of  1837,  for  their  busi- 
ness had  been  prudently  managed,  and  they  could 
thus  meet  the  crisis.  Soon  after,  the  father  re- 
tired, and  a  partnership  was  formed  l>etween  Or- 
rington  and  his  brother  W.  H.  They  did  a  good 
bu.siness.  and  besides  dealing  in  dri,-  goods  traded 
largely  and  shipj>ed  hay  and  produce  to  the  .South. 
In  1842,  Mr.  Lunt  sold  out,  preparaton,-  to  mov- 
ing westward.  He  l)elieved  that  better  advant- 
ages were  furnished  b\-  the  new  and  rapidh-  grow- 
ing West,  and  the  then  young  town  of  Chicago 
attracted  him.  He  left  home  on  the  ist  of  No- 
veml>er.  and  on  the  i  ith  reached  his  destination. 
This  western  town  had  then  not  a  single  railroad, 
and  its  business  at  that  time  was  very  slack,  not 
much  being  done  through  the  winter  sea.son. 
Mr.  Lunt  hoped  for  l)etter  oppiortunities  in  the 
spring,  but  his  wife's  health  at  that  time  forced 
him  to  return  to  Maine.  The  many  distxiurage- 
ments  which  he  met  disheartened  him,  but  he 
would  not  give  up.  and  in  the  latter  part  of  July 
we  again  find  him  in  Chicago.  He  had  no  capi- 
tal, but  was  furnished  with  letters  of  recommen- 
dation from  leading  merchants  in  the  Ea.st.  He 
began  business  as  a  commis-sion  merchant,  and 
soon  had  built  up  a  flourishing  trade.  In  the 
summer  of  I. '^44  he  lx\gan  dealing  in  grain,  and 
in  the  following  winter  packed  jxjrk  to  a  limited 
extent.  Both  of  these  ventures  proved  profitable, 
and  he  then  leased  one  hundred  feet  of  ground  on 
the  river  front  for  ten  years,  erecting  thereon  a 
grain  house.  With  the  growth  of  the  city  his 
business  increased,  and  in  those  early  days  he 
made  one  sale  of  fifty  thousand  bushels,  which 
was  considered  a  large  tran.saction.  He  had  now 
made  alx)ut  Si 0.000,  but  trade  the  following  spring 
proved  disa.strous,  and  he  lost  all  he  had.  He 
never  shipped  grain  East,  Chicago  being  his  only 
market,  and  through  the  experience  gained  by 
his  losses  he  became  a  pru<U-iit   and  i-art-ful  hiisi- 


4IO 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


ness  man.  He  has  been  a  member  of  the  Board 
of  Trade  since  the  beginning,  but  the  business 
done  there  in  early  years  was  little,  as  the  organi- 
zation had  to  struggle  for  existence  for  some 
time,  notwith-standing  a  lunch  of  crackers  and 
cheese  served  as  an  attraction.  In  1853  he  aban- 
doned the  grain  trade,  and  retired  for  a  time  from 
commercial  life. 

Mr.  Lunt  has  been  connected  to  a  considerable 
extent  with  official  po.sitions.  He  was  first  called 
to  office  when  in  his  twenty-second  year,  being 
elected  Clerk  and  Trea.surer  of  his  town,  and  also 
appointed  Justice  of  the  Peace.  In  1855  he  was 
elected  to  the  office  of  Water  Commissioner  for 
three  years  for  the  south  division  of  the  citv',  and 
on  the  expiration  of  his  first  term  was  re-elected. 
At  the  end  of  the  six  years  the  city  departments 
were  consolidated  in  the  Board  of  Public  Works, 
and  during  the  last  three  years  he  served  as 
Trea.surer  and  President  of  the  Board.  He  was 
made  a  Director  of  the  Galena  ^t  Chicago  Union 
Railroad  in  1855,  and  contiinied  as  .such  until  the 
consolidation  of  the  road  with  the  Northwestern. 
For  several  vears  he  was  one  of  the  Auditors  of 
the  Board  of  Directors,  and  his  time  was  largel.v 
given  to  the  business  of  the  office.  During  his 
last  two  years  with  the  road  he  .served  as  its  \'ice- 
President. 

Mr.  Lunt  had  previously  leased  his  warehouse, 
but  the  parties  failed  after  the  panic  of  1857,  and 
he  took  possession  of  it  in  1859.  Forming  a 
partnership  with  his  brother,  S.  P.  Lunt.  they 
used  the  warehouse  as  a  canal  elevator,  and  did  a 
large  business,  sometimes  handling  three  and  a- 
half  million  bushels  annually.  Impaired  health, 
however,  forced  him  to  abandon  the  grain  trade 
in  1862,  and  in  1865  he  started  for  the  Old  World 
with  his  family,  spending  two  years  abroad,  dur- 
ing which  time  he  visited  many  of  the  famous 
cities  of  Europe  and  Asia. 

Mr.  Lunt  was  united  in  marriage,  on  the  i6th 
of  January',  1842,  to  Cornelia  A.  Gray.  Her  father, 
Hon.  Samuel  Gray,  was  a  prominent  attorney  of 
Bowdoinham,  his  native  town,  and  was  Repre- 
sentative, Senator  and  a  member  of  the  Gover- 
nor's Council  of  the  State.  He  was  also  promi- 
nent in  commercial  circles.     Four  children  were 


born  unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Lunt,  three  sons  and  a 
daughter,  but  one  son  died  in  infancv .  Horace, 
who  graduated  from  Harvard  University,  is  a 
leading  attorney;  and  George  is  a  sturdy  busi- 
ness man.  Cornelia  G.,  the  accomplished  daugh- 
ter, seems  to  have  inherited  her  father's  philan- 
thropic nature,  and  takes  a  most  active  part  in 
charitable  and  benevolent  work. 

.During  the  late  war  the  I'nion  found  in  Mr. 
Lunt  a  faithful  friend.  He  was  a  member  of  the 
Conmiittee  of  Safety  and  War  Finance,  appointed 
at  the  first  meeting,  which  convened  April  13, 
1861.  The  Sunday  after  the  fall  of  Sumter  he 
spent  in  raising  supplies  and  in  preparing  the  first 
regiment  to  start  from  this  city  to  Cairo.  His 
labors  in  behalf  of  the  army  and  the  I'nion  then 
continued  until  victory-  perched  on  the  banners  of 
the  North.  Four  years  after  the  commencement 
of  the  struggle  he  had  the  pleasure  of  being 
present  when  the  Old  Flag  was  again  flung  to  the 
breeze  from  the  battlements  of  the  fort,  attending 
the  Grand  Review  of  the  victorious  army,  and 
visiting  the  principal  cities  of  the  late  Confed- 
eracy. 

When  about  twenty  years  of  age.  Mr.  Lunt 
joined  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  and  his 
name  is  inseparably  connected  with  the  history  of 
its  growth  in  this  locality.  For  about  twenty 
years  he  was  Trustee  of  the  Clark  Street  Method- 
ist Church,  and  during  much  of  that  time  was 
Secretar>-  of  the  Board.  He  bought  .several  lots 
on  the  corner  of  State  and  Harrison  Streets  in 
1848,  and  five  years  later  sold  them  on  three 
years'  time  to  the  church  at  cost  price.  That 
ground  was  afterwards  exchanged  for  the  site  of 
the  Wabash  Avenue  Methodist  Church,  to  which 
he  transferred  his  membership  in  1858.  He  has 
always  given  most  liberally  for  the  erection  of 
church  edifices,  both  of  his  own  and  other  denom- 
inations in  the  city,  and  struggling  churches  in 
the  West.  Of  the  Clark  Seminary  at  Aurora,  he 
was  one  of  the  fir.st  Trustees.  This  was  built  by 
a  private  company,  but  subsequently  turned  over 
to  the  church  without  compensation.  He  was 
one  of  the  charter  members,  and  has  been  Secre- 
tary, Treasurer  and  General  Business  Agent  of 
the  Garrett  Biblical   Institute  from  its  organiza- 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGR-\PHICAL   RECORD. 


411 


tioji  in  1S53.  ^"  company  with  a  tew  others,  he 
procured  the  charter  for  and  incorporated  the 
Xorthwesteni  University  of  Evanston.  The  com- 
mittee was  appointed  to  secure  a  site.  The> 
wished  to  get  land  on  the  hike  front,  hut  could 
find  none  which  they  thought  near  enough  to  the 
city,  and  were  alnu>st  closing  a  deal  for  property 
in  Ravenswood.  Through  the  instnunentality.of 
Mr.  Lunt,  however,  who.  in  riding  one  day,  vis- 
ited the  site  of  Evanston. the  business  was  deferred, 
and  led  to  the  selection  of  the  spot  where  now 
stands  the  University.  To  this  institution  he  has 
contributed  in  time,  energy  and  money,  and  while 
he  was  in  Euroi^e  the  board  set  aside  S20.000. 
the  amount  which  he  had  given,  as  the  Orrington 
Lunt  Library  Fund.  He  has  always  l>een  on  the 
executive  committee  of  the  school,  and  has  been 
largely  in.stnunental  in  the  success  of  the  institu- 
tion. He  was  early  connected  with  the  Chicago 
Orphan  Asylum,  and  rai.sed  nearh  S20.000  to 
complete  the  edifice,  while  a  memlier  of  the  build- 
ing committee  in  the  summer  of  1854. 

The  Chicago  fire  consumed  the  home  of  Mr. 
Lunt  and  all  of  the  buildings  from  which  he  de- 
rived an  income.  The  winter  following  he ser\ed 
on  the  Special  Fire  Relief  Committee.  Many 
Methodist  Churches  and  the  Garrett  Biblical  In- 
stitute also  suffered  great  los.ses.  and  a  committee 
to  devise  means  for  their  relief  was  appointed  by 
the  Rock  River  Conference.  Arrangements  were 
made  to  solicit  funds,  and  Mr.  Lunt  Ijecame  Sec- 
retary and  Treasurer.  For  eighteen  months  he 
was  actively  engaged  in  the  disbursement  and 
collection  of  the  money  raised,  about  5150-000. 
By  this  means  he  was  enabled  to  rebuild  the  Gar- 
rett building,  the  .structure  being  finer  than  the 
former  one.  When  he  could  find  time  for  his  own 
work  he  built  the  fine  banking-house  occupie<l  by 
Preston.  Kean  &  Co.  He  has  truly  borne  his 
part  in  the  upbuilding  of  Chicago. 

On  the  i6th  of  Jaiuiary ,  1842.  was  celebrated 
the  marriage  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Lunt.  and  a  half- 
century  later  was  celebrated  their  golden  wedding. 
Two  hundred  friends  met  to  extend  to  this  worthy 
couple  their  congratulations  for  the  happy  years 
that  had  passed,  to  review  the  lives  so  well  spent, 
and  to  wish  them  the  return  of  man\-  more  such 


pleasant  <xxa.sif)ns.  The  co-workers  of  Mr.  Lunt 
in  church,  in  business  and  in  his  university  labors 
all  bore  their  testimony,  not  only  to  his  pleasant 
companionship,  but  to  his  honorable,  upright  life 
and  exemplary  character.  Many  beautiful  gifts 
attested  the  esteem  and  love  of  guests,  which 
could  not  be  expres.sed  in  words  alone.  Al- 
though Mr.  Lunt  has  led  a  very  prominent  life, 
he  is  yet  retiring  and  very  unassuming  ni  man- 
ner. He  has  followed  the  Golden  Rule,  has 
walked  in  the  light  as  he  saw  it.  has  Ix-en  un- 
wearied in  well-doing,  and  when  he  shall  have 
lieen  called  to  the  home  beyond  he  will  feave  to 
his  family  what  Solomon  says  is  lietter  than  great 
riches.  ' '  a  gwxl  name. 


i^H^i 


IILLIAM  G.  WATERMAN,  an  enterpris- 
ing, substantial  farmer  of  Cook  County,  re- 
siding on  section  27.  Barrington  Town.ship. 
where  he  owns  and  operates  three  hundred  acres 
of  valuable  land,  is  a  native  of  North  Adams. 
Berkshire  County.  Mass..  born  January  23.  1816. 
The  family  was  earh  founded  in  New  England, 
and  our  .subject's  grandfather,  John  Waterman, 
a  native  of  Rhode  Island,  aided  the  colonies 
in  their  struggle  for  independence.  He  then  re- 
moved to  the  town  of  Cheshire,  Berkshire  County, 
Ma.ss..  where  he  reared  his  family,  and  there  his 
son.  Col.  William  Waterman,  was  born.  Richard 
Waterman,  the  first  ancestor  to  come  to  America, 
located  in  Salem.  Mass.. in  162S,  and  joined  Roger 
Williams  at  Providence,  R.  I.  He  was  one  of 
the  thirteen  settlers  of  that  city.  His  son  Re- 
solve marrietl  the  youngest  daughter  of  Roger 
Williams,  and  they  had  three  children,  one  of 
whom,  Capt.  John  Waterman  was  a  prominent 
citi/en  of  that  day. 

The  father  of  our  subject  grew  to  manhood  in 
his  native  county,  and  there  married  Sarah  Buch- 
lin.  a  native  of  Herkimer  County.  N.  Y.  Locat- 
ing in  North  Adams,  he  there  engaged  in  busi- 
ness, and  was  one  of  its  leading  citizens.  He 
.ser\ed  as  a  Colonel  in  the  State  militia,  and  was 
three  times  a  member  of  the  State  Legislature 


412 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


He  also  served  as  Count>-  Comiiiissioiier,  and 
held  other  local  offices.  Removing  from  North 
Adams  to  Williamstown,  Mass.,  he  there  .spent 
his  remaining  da.\s,  his  death  occurring  February 
26,  1858,  at  the  advanced  age  of  .seventy-four. 
His  wife  .survived  him  for  a  number  of  year.s,  and 
departed  this  life  January  15,  1864.  at  the  age  of 
.seventy-six.  In  their  family  were  .six  sons  and 
two  daughters  who  grew  to  mature  >ears.  Car- 
oline married  Harve>-  T.  Cole,  and,  settling  in 
William.stown,  Mass.,  died  October  17,  1881; 
Henry  B.  al.so  died  in  Williamstown,  leaving  a 
widow  and  two  sons;  H.  D.  met  his  death  by  ac- 
cident, February  20,  1866;  James  M.  is  living  in 
the  old  home,  in  Williamstown,  which  was  built 
in  1765;  Albert  G.  is  now  living  in  Troy,  N.  Y.; 
Andrew  J.,  who  was  a  prominent  lawyer  and 
served  as  Attorney-General  of  Massachusetts,  is 
now  living  in  Pittsfield,  that  vState;  John  B.  re- 
.sides  in  Williamstown;  and  Eliza  Alnieda  became 
the  wife  of  Mr.  Sabin,  and  died  in  Williamstown, 
June  I,  186,^,  leaving  a  daughter,  who  is  now 
visiting  her  Uncle  William. 

Mr.  Waterman  of  this  sketch  was  reared  in  his 
native  vState,  and  was  educated  in  the  common 
schools  and  in  an  academy.  He  possessed  special 
aptitude  in  his  studies  and  was  always  at  the  head 
of  his  classes.  For  a  number  of  years  he  succe.ss- 
fully  engaged  in  teaching,  and  for  .some  time  con- 
ducted a  private  school  in  Cheshire.  He  then 
embarked  in  merchandising  at  that  place,  where 
he  carried  on  operations  until  coming  West  to 
look  over  the  country,  in  1838.  Here  he  worked 
by  the  month  as  a  farm  hand  and  taught  school 
for  a  time,  but  in  the  fall  of  1839  he  returned  to 
Massachusetts,  where  he  again  engaged  in  mer- 
chandi.sing  and  also  in  teaching  until  1855. 

Mr.  Waterman  was  joined  in  wedlock  in  Che- 
shire, June  12,  1844,  with  Mi.ss  Phoebe  A.  Foster, 
daughter  of  Edmund  Fo.ster,  and  a  granddaugh- 
ter of  Rev.  John  Foster,  who  was  a  Congrega- 
tional nnnister  at  Littletown,  Mass.,  for  forty 
years.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Waterman  ha\-e  one  son, 
John  A.  They  also  lost  two  children.  Robert 
Morris,  who  died  September  20,  1871,  at  the  age 
of  twenty -six  years,  was  a  well-educated  young 
man,  and  for  four  years  taught  in  a  university. 


Sarah  Augusta  died  September  8,  1869,  at  the  age 
of  twenty-one  years.  She,  too,  was  a  successful 
teacher. 

In  1855  ^^^-  Waterman  brought  his  famih'  to 
Illinois,  and  purchased  two  hundred  acres  of 
partially  improved  land,  upon  which  was  a  log 
cabin,  in  which  he  made  his  home  for  eleven 
years.  At  length  he  erected  a  substantial  frame 
residence,  a  good  barn  and  other  necessary  build- 
ings, and  he  now  has  a  fine  farm,  highly  cul- 
tivated and  plea.santly  situated  five  miles  from 
Barrington.  He  has  led  a  busy  and  useful  life, 
and  as  the  result  of  his  good  management  and 
perseverance  he  has  acquired  a  comfortable  com- 
petence, which  numbers  him  among  the  sub- 
stantial citizens  of  the  community. 

In  his  political  views,  Mr.  Waterman  is  a  Re- 
publican, and  has  supported  that  party  since 
its  organization.  He  was  originally  a  Jackson 
Democrat,  and  his  first  ballot  was  cast  for  Martin 
Van  Buren  in  1840.  He  takes  quite  an  active 
interest  in  local  politics  and  has  .served  as  Town- 
ship Supervisor  and  Tru.stee,  in  which  po.sitions 
he  has  discharged  his  duties  with  a  promptness 
and  fidelity  that  have  won  him  high  connneuda- 
tion.  He  is  alwa\s  true  to  every  trust,  whether 
public  or  private,  and  a  well-spent  life  has  won 
the  high  regard  of  all  with  whom  he  has  come  in 
contact. 


\& 


ASON  L.  STAPLES  is  a  farmer  and  dairy- 
man, residing  on  section  14,  Palatine  Town- 
ship, Cook  County.  He  is  a  man  of  up- 
right character  and  sterling  worth,  who  has  the 
confidence  and  esteem  of  all  and  well  deserves 
representation  in  this  volume.  He  is  numbered 
among  the  native  sons  of  Cook  County,  his  birth 
having  occurred  in  Palatine  Township,  on  the 
loth  of  December,  1854.  His  parents,  Lyman 
and  Mary  (Sutherland)  Staples,  were  both  na- 
tives of  Vermont,  and  in  the  Green  Mountain 
State  resided  until  after  their  marriage.  They 
became  the  parents  of  a  family  of  two  sons  and 
two  daughters,  all  of  whom  reached  mature  years. 
The  eldest,  Emily,  is  the  wife  of  John  Wilson,   a 


PORTRAIT  AND  HIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


4>3 


suhstaiUial  tanner  aiui  business  man  of  Palatine. 
Pennelia  is  the  wile  of  A.  H.  Foskelt,  of  Chicago. 
Merritt  A.  was  mairietl  and  Ijecanie  a  farmer  of 
Fayette  County,  Iowa,  where  his  denth  occurred. 
The  youngest  of  the  family  is  Mason  I,,  of  this 
sketch.  In  1S33,  the  father  removed"  Westward 
and  became  one  of  the  lionore<I  pioneer  settlers  of 
Cm>k  County.  111.,  where  he  joined  his  brother- 
in-law.  Mason  Sutherland,  who  had  settled  here 
two  years  previous.  At  the  time  Mr.  Staples 
made  his  settlement,  the  nearest  hon.se  to  the 
east  was  eleven  miles,  and  Chicago  was  then  but 
a  village,  while  the  greater  part  of  the  county 
was  but  a  swamp.  He  made  a  claim,  and  when 
the  land  came  into  the  market  entered  it  from  the 
Government.  To  clearing  and  improving  this 
tract  he  at  once  turned  his  attention,  and  at  lengtli 
the  task  of  opening  up  a  farm  of  three  hundred 
and  twenty  acres  was  conipleled.  For  about  half 
a  c-entury  he  successfully  cultivated  that  land. 
He  then  rented  his  farm  and  removed  to  Palatine, 
where  the  la.st  years  of  his  life  were  sp>ent  in  re 
tirement.  His  death  (xrciirretl  December  16, 
1890,  at  the  advanced  age  of  ninety-four  years, 
and  he  was  lai  1  to  rest  in  Palatine  Cemetery, 
where  a  neat  monmnent  has  lieen  erected  to  his 
memor\-.  He  voted  with  the  Republican  part> 
and  took  quite  an  active  part  in  Ux-al  politics. 
For  several  years  he  served  as  Supervisor,  and 
was  Highway  Commissioner  for  a-quarter  of  a 
century.  Kver  true  to  public  and  private  tru.sts. 
he  thereby  won  the  confidence  and  good-will  of 
the  entire  community.  His  wife  still  sur\-ives 
him  and  is  vet  living  in  Palatine. 

Upon  the  home  farm.  Mas<jn  Staples  spent  the 
days  of  his  boyhood  and  youth,  and  the  district 
schools  of  the  neighlxirlioo<l  afforded  him  his  ed- 
ucational privileges.  He  remained  with  his 
father,  aiding  in  the  labor  of  the  homestead,  and 
when  he  had  attained  his  majority  assumed  its 
matiagement.  On  his  father's  death  he  succee<led 
to  the  ownership,  thus  securing  two  hundred  and 
forty  acres  of  highly  cultivated  and  improved  land. 
In  the  fall  of  1S89.  he  purchased  a  tract  of  land 
of  forty  acres,  adjoining  the  corjxjration  lintils  of 
Palatine,  and,  settling  thereon,  made  it  a  valnal)k- 
and  desirable  place.     He  built  a  substantial  resi- 


dence and  made  other  g<M>:i  ini]>r<i\  emeiits.  Hulh 
places  have  llowing  wells  and  are  thus  supplied 
with  gocKi  water.  Our  subject  now  devotes  his 
time  and  attention  to  the  dair\  business,  and  for 
this  purjKJse  keep.s  on  hand  aJHiut  forty  cows.  He 
alsti  raises  grain  and  hay  to  some  extent,  and  by 
their  .sale  adds  not  a  little  to  his  income. 

On  the  loth  of  NovemlKrr,  1S76,  Mr.  Staples 
was  united  in  marriage  in  Palatine  Towniship. 
with  Miss  Clementine  Iv  Waters,  daughter  of 
Henjamin  Waters,  one  of  the  early  settlers  of  the 
county.  Her  entire  life  has  been  passed  in  this 
hx^-ality.  ami  like  her  husband  she  is  widely  and 
favorably  known. 

Mr.  Staples  has  managed  his  bu.siness  affairs 
in  an  able  manner,  and  his  practical  and  progress- 
ive spirit  has  gained  for  him  a  comfortable  com- 
petence. In  {wlitics.  he  has  been  identified  with 
the  Republican  party  since  liecoming  a  voter. 
He  is  now  serving  his  second  tenn  as  Highway 
Commissioner,  and  is  an  efficient  and  capable  of- 
ficer. 

NAK\i;V  n.  HIRD  has  l>een  prominently 
identified  with  the  advancement  of  Chicago 
and  its  interests  for  many  years.  For  nearly 
half  a  century  he  has  resided  in  the  city,  or  in  its 
beautiful  suburb  of  Evanston,  and  during  this  long 
jieriixl  he  has  Ix^n  a  p<">werfnl  factor  in  molding 
not  only  the  destiny  of  this  metropolis,  but  of  the 
entire  West  as  well.  He  was  Ixjrn  in  Htniting- 
ton.  FairfieUl  Ctninty,  Conn..  February  14.  1.S28, 
and  is  a  son  of  Alans«>n  Hurd,  who  was  of  Eng- 
lish descent.  His  mother  was  of  both  Dutch  and 
Irish  lineage.  If  ever  it  could  Ik:  said  of  anv  one 
that  he  made  his  own  way  in  life  fri>m  poverty  to 
a  high  and  honorable  station,  it  is  true  of  Harvey 
HurJ.  It  is  said  that  when  he  left  home  to  seek 
a  f  irtune  for  himself,  he  carried  all  his  {K)s.scs.sions 
in  a  handkerchief,  and  when  he  arrive*!  in  Chi- 
cago, some  years  later,  his  capital  was  only  half 
a  dollar:  yet  this  p«H)r  youth  was  in  subsequent 
years  to  play  a  part  which  has  influenced  the  ca- 
reer of  the  State,  ami  nidetl  in  molding  the  pre 
liininary  studies  of  a  generation  of  \oung  .\meri- 


414 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


can  lawyers.  Until  he  was  fifteen  years  of  age 
he  spent  the  summer  months  in  work  upon  his 
father's  farm,  while  in  the  winter  season  he  at- 
tended school. 

On  the  ist  ot  May,  1842.  Mr.  Hurd  bade  adieu 
to  his  parents  and  journeyed  on  foot  to  Bridge- 
port, where  he  became  an  apprentice  in  the  office 
of  the  Bridgeport  Stmidard.  a  Whig  newspaper. 
With  a  company  of  ten  yoimg  men,  in  the  autumn 
of  1844,  he  emigrated  to  Illinois,  and  became  a 
.student  in  Jubilee  College,  of  Peoria  County,  then 
presided  over  b>  Rq\.  Samuel  Chase.  A  dis- 
agreement arose  between  him  and  the  Principal 
after  he  had  been  in  college  for  about  a  year,  and 
Mr.  Hurd  then  went  to  Peoria,  where  he  sought 
employment,  but  unsuccessfully.  He  therefore 
took  pa.ssage  on  a  baggage  stage  for  Chicago, 
where,  in  the  office  of  the  Eveniiii;  Journal,  he 
soon  secured  work.  This  paper  was  then  jnib- 
lished  b\-  Wilson  &  Geer.  He  afterwards  worked 
on  the  Prairie  Farmer,  and  in  the  fall  of  1.S47 
began  studying  law  in  the  office  of  Calvin  De- 
Wolf.  In  1848  he  was  admitted  to  the  Bar,  and 
formed  a  partnership  with  Carlos  Ha\en,  who 
was  afterwards  State's  Attorney.  His  next  part- 
ner was  Henry  Snapp,  who  later  represented  the 
Joliet  District  in  Congress,  and  from  1850  until 
1854  he  was  a  partner  of  Andrew  J.  Brown.  This 
latter  firm  had  large  transactions  in  real  estate,  and 
owned  two  hundred  and  forty  acres  of  land,  which 
was  platted  as  a  part  of  the  village  of  Evanston. 
Mr.  Hurd  was  one  of  the  first  to  build  in  this 
place.  He  began  the  erection  of  the  home  which 
is  .still  his  place  of  residence  in  the  summer  of 
1854,  and  moved  into  it  in  the  following  summer. 
It  is  one  of  the  finest  homes  in  this  lieautiful  sub- 
urb, and  at  the  time  of  its  erection  it  stood  alone 
on  a  block  of  ground.  Its  owner  enjoys  the  dis- 
tinction of  having  been  the  fir.st  President  of  the 
\'illage  Board. 

In  May,  1853,  Mr.  Hurd  married  Miss  Cor- 
nelia A.,  daughter  of  the  late  Capt.  James  Hilli- 
ard,  of  Middletown,  Conn.  Three  daughters 
were  bom  unto  them:  Eda,  wife  of  George  S. 
Lord;  Ettie,  who  died  in  1884:  and  Xellie,  wife 
of  John  A.  Corastock.  On  the  ist  of  November, 
i860,    Mr.    Hurd    wedded    Mrs.    Sarah    Collins, 


widow  of  the  late  George  Collins.  She  died  in 
1890,  and  in  July,  1891,  he  married  Miss  Susanna 
Van  Wyck,  a  lady  highly  esteemed  in  social 
circles  in  Chicago  and  Evanston. 

Mr.  Hurd  was  an  ardent  Abolitionist,  and  took 
an  active  jSart  in  the  stirring  events  which  occur- 
red in  Chicago  before  and  after  the  repeal  of  the 
Missouri  Compromise.     The  result  of  this  meas- 
ure of  Congre.ss  was  to  make  Kansas  a  prize  for 
which  both  the  free  and  slave  States  contended. 
The  slave-holders  of  western  Missouri  crossed  the 
border,  driving  out  man\-   of  the  free  State  set- 
tlers  and    killing   others,  pre-empted  lands,  and 
oppo.sed  the  passage  of  emigrants  from  the  North- 
ern States  through  Mis.souri,  compelling  the  latter 
to  take  a  more  circuitous  route  through  Iowa  and 
Nebraska.      Kan.sas  was  the  scene  of  contimied 
conflict  between  these  parties  during  the  spring 
and  summer  of  1855,  the  border  ruffians  of  Mis- 
.souri seeking  to  drive  out  the  free  State  settlers 
by  nuirder  and  arson,  and  the  free  State  .settlers 
retaliating.    The  cr>-  of '  'bleeding  Kansas' '  echoed 
through  the  North,  and  emigration  societies  were 
formed  in  the  free  States  to  aid,  arm   and   protect 
the  Northern  settlers  in   Kan.sas.      A   convention 
was  held  in  Buffalo,  X.  V.,  at  which   a   nati(mal 
Kan.sas  conu'nittee  was   formed,  and    Mr.  Hurd, 
who  was  a   member  of  the  con\-ention,  became 
secretarv  of  its  executive  committee,  with  head- 
Cjuarters  in  Chicago.      His  assistant  secretar>-  was 
Ho/ace  White,  afterwards  editor  of  the  Chicago 
TribuiH.  and  now  of  New  York  City.      In  1856, 
Kan.sas  crops  proved  a  failure,  owing  to  the  dep- 
redations of  the  contending  factions.      In   antici- 
pation of  a  lack  of  seeds  for  the  planting  in  the 
coming  spring,  the  committee    in   New  York    in 
February,    1857,   passed  a  resolution  instructing 
the  executive  committee  in  Chicago  to  purchase 
and  forward  the  necessary  seed,  and  at  the  same 
time  appropriated  $5,000  to  aid  John  Brown  in 
the  organization  and  equipment  of  the  free-.soil 
settlers  into  companies  for  self- protection.      Mr. 
Hurd   found,  on   returning  to  Chicago,  that  the 
funds  in  the  hands  of  the  treasurer  were  not  suffi- 
cient to  meet  both  requirements.      He  therefore 
decided  to  buy  and  send  on  the  seed.     One  hun- 
dred tons,  including  spring  wheat,  barley,  corn, 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


413 


potatoes  and  other  seeds,  were  purchased  and  for- 
warded. When  Brown  a])])lied  for  the  money 
appropriated  to  him.  he  found  the  treasury  of  the 
committee  empty.  Al  first  Oerritt  Smith  and 
other  friends  of  Brown  were  inchned  to  hnd  faidt 
witli  the  action  of  Mr.  Hurd.  hut  in  the  mean 
time  the  free  settlers  had  been  waiting  anxiously 
at  Lawrence,  Kan.,  for  the  seeds.  They  liad 
been  forwarded  by  a  small  steamer,  which  was  to 
ascend  the  Kan.sas  River  to  Lawrence,  where  the 
.settlers  a.s.semhled  to  receive  them.  The  steamer 
was  delaved  two  weeks  by  low  water,  and  when 
at  last  it  did  arrive,  the  settlers  were  so  over-joyed 
that  the  wisdom  of  Mr.  Kurd's  cour.se  was  amph- 
vindicated.  The  settlers  would  have  been  obliged 
to  leave  Kansas  had  not  this  timely  provision  for 
a  crop  been  made.  As  it  was,  the  tide  of  emigra- 
tion from  the  free  States  kept  on  increasing,  and 
the  pro-.slavery  men,  finding  that  they  could  not 
win  in  the  contest,  soon  abandoned  it. 

In  1862.  Mr.  Hurd  formed  a  partnership  with 
Hon.  Henry  Booth,  and  at  the  same  time  accepted 
the  position  of  lecturer  in  the  law  department  of 
the  ITniversity  of  Chicago,  which  Mr.  Booth  had 
aided  in  organizing  three  years  previous,  and  of 
which  he  was  Principal.  In  i,S6.S  the  partner- 
.ship  was  dissohed,  Mr.  Hurd  retiring  from  active 
practice.  In  April,  1869,  he  was  appointed  by 
Gov.  Palmer  one  of  three  commissioners  to  re- 
vise and  re-write  the  General  Statutes  of  the 
State  of  Illinois.  His  colleagues  were  William 
E.  Nelson,  of  Decatur,  and  Micliael  Shaeffer, 
of  Salem,  both  of  whom  witlidrew  in  a  short  time, 
leaving  the  tinrden  of  the  work  upon  Mr.  Hiu'd. 
He  completed  his  ta.sk  after  the  adjournment  o 
the  Twenty-eighth  General  Assembly  in  Ajiril. 
1874,  and  was  appointed  b\-  tliat  body  to  edit  and 
supervise  the  publication,  which  he  accomplished 
to  the  entire  satisfaction  of  the  general  puV)lic. 
The  labor  which  he  performed  in  this  revision  is 
such  as  only  lawyers  can  full\-  appreciate.  He 
had  not  only  to  compile  into  one  homogeneous 
whole  the  \arious  laws  which  from  time  to  time 
had  been  enacted  at  the  biennial  meetings  of  the 
Legislature,  but  to  ada])t  them  to  the  new  .State 
Con.stitution  of  1870,  discarding  old  provisions 
which  were  in  conflict  with  it,  and  constructing 


new  ones  in  conformity  with  it.  Thesiiccessof  his 
work  was  immediate,  and  "  Hurd's  Revi.sed  Stat- 
utes "  is  an  indispensable  work  in  e\'ery  law  office 
throughout  the  State,  and  in  nian\  i)ublic  offices. 
The  State  edition  of  1S74  of  fifteen  thousand 
copies  was  soon  exhausted,  and  Mr.  Hurd  has 
been  called  upon  to  edit  eight  editions  since,  all 
of  which  have  received  llie  un(|ualified  commen- 
dation of  the  Bar. 

In  the  siunuier  of  \S-ti,  Mr.  Ilurd  was  again 
elected  to  a  chair  in  the  law  .school,  which  had 
become  the  Union  College  of  Law  of  the  Univer- 
sity of  Chicago  and  the  Northwestern  University, 
and  he  is  now  Professor  of  Pleading,  Practice  and 
-Statutory  Law  in  that  institution,  it  now  being 
the  law  department  of  the  Northwestern  Univer- 
.sity.  He  has  here  an  occupation  which  is  thor- 
oughly congenial  to  him.  He  has  always  been  a 
careful  student,  and  his  arguments  of  cases  before 
the  higher  courts  were  always  models  of  clear  and 
accurate  .statement  of  legal  propositions  and  logi- 
cal reasoning.  In  his  academic  work  he  displays 
the  same  invaluable  qualities,  imparting  to  his 
cla.ss  a  thorough  understanding  of  principles,  and 
training  them  to  systematic  and  methodical  hab- 
its. At  the  special  election  for  a  Judge  of  the  Su- 
preme Court  of  Illinois,  December  11,  1875,  Mr. 
Hurd  was  nominated  by  the  Republicans,  but 
was  opposed  by  T.  L.  Dickey,  who  was  then  Cor- 
poration Coun.sel  of  the  city  of  Chicago.  Mr. 
Dickev  was  a  Democrat,  and  had  the  entire  sup- 
port of  that  i)art\':  he  had.  moreover,  the  whole 
influence  of  the  city  administration,  and,  to  crown 
all,  he  had  the  backing  of  the  railroad  cor- 
fporations,  who  were  disposed  to  revenge  them- 
sehes  ui)(>n  him  for  the  stringent  measures  of 
railroad  legislation  which  the  General  Assembh- 
had  enacted,  which  were  contained  in  "  Hurd's 
Revised  Statutes,"  and  with  the  framing  of  which 
he  had  nuich  to  do.  By  the  aid  of  this  powerful 
combination  he  was  defeated.  Just  before  the 
election  a  defamatorx-  pamphlet  was  published 
against  him  by  a  mend)er  of  the  same  church  to 
whicii  he  belongs,  a\u\.  though  it  was  of  too 
slight  importance  to  influence  the  result,  it  was 
not  a  matter  to  be  o\crl  >oked  b_\  Mr,  Ilnrd,  who 
had    always    borne  an   irreproachable  character. 


4i6 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


The  author  was  tried  and  convicted  of  slander 
and  unchristian  conduct  by  a  church  court,  and 
received  its  formal  censure,  while  Mr.  Hurd  made 
many  friends  by  his  forbearing  and  Christian 
conduct  toward  his  defanier.  Since  that  time  he 
has  not  appeared  before  the  public  as  a  candidate 
for  any  office,  but  seems  to  prefer  the  honorable 
retirement  which  he  has  .so  well  earned,  finding 
sufficient  occupation  in  his  academic  duties,  and 
employing  his  leisure  in  the  pursuits  of  a  scholar. 
Mr.  Hurd  was  one  of  six  gentlemen  selected  to 
fill  the  vacancy  on  the  Board  of  County  Commis- 
sioners of  Cook  County  created  by  the  conviction 
of  members  of  that  board  for  defrauding  the 
countv.  He  has  the  credit  of  being  the  father  of 
the  new  drainage  system  of  Chicago,  by  which 
the  sewerage  of  the  city,  instead  of  being,  as  now. 
discharged  into  Lake  Michigan,  the  .source  of  the 
water  supply,  is  fo  be  carried  into  the  Illinois 
River,  bv  means  of  a  channel  across  what  is 
known  as  the  Chicago  Divide.  While  he  does 
not  claim  the  credit  of  having  first  suggested  such 
a  channel  t  indeed  it  has  been  long  talked  of  ),  he 
is.  without  doubt,  the  author  of  the  plan  of 
creating  a  municipal  district  of  the  city  of  Chicago 
— the  Chicago  Sanitar>-  District — and  getting  it 
adopted.  Until  he  suggested  this  plan  it  was 
generally  conceded  that  there  was  no  wa\'  of 
raising  the  necessary  money  to  construct  the 
channel  without  an  amendiiient  to  the  constitu- 
tion, the  city  of  Chicago  having  reached  the  limit 
of  its  borrowing  and  taxing  power.  It  was 
through  Mr.  Hurd's  suggesting  of  this  plan  to 
Mayor  Harrison  that  the  drainage  and  water 
.supply  commission  known  as  the  Herring  Com- 
mission was  raised.  He  was  the  friend  and  ad- 
viser of  that  commission,  and  was  the  author  of 
the  first  bill  on  the  subject  introduced  into  the 
Legi.slature  in  1886.  known  as  the  Hurd  Bill, 
which  resulted  in  a  legislative  commission  to  fur- 
ther investigate  the  subject  and  present  a  bill. 
The  bill  reported  b\-  that  commission,  passed  in 
1887.  although  it  differed  in  some  respects  from 
the  original  Hurd  Bill,  was  in  the  main  the 
same,  and  was  supported  before  the  Legislature 
by  him  and  his  friends.  He  conducted  the  pro- 
ceedings for  its  adoption  by  the  people  of  the  dis- 


trict, and  it  was  adopted  at  the  November  election 
in  1887  by  an  almost  unanimous  vote.  His  resi- 
dence outside  of  the  district,  inEvanston,  although 
not  a  legal  disqualification,  has  in  the  minds  of 
politicians  ruled  him  out  as  a  candidate  for  Tru.stee; 
.still  he  has  not  ceased  to  devote  his  energies  to 
its  .succe.ss.  The  plan  as  outlined  is  now  in  a  fair 
way  of  being  accomplished,  as  the  channel  is  ac- 
tually being  constructed  upon  that  plan,  and 
when  it  is  done  it  will  no  doubt  be  regarded  as 
one  of  the  grandest  accomplishments  of  the  age. 
It  will  at  once  give  to  Chicago  an  excellent  system 
of  drainage,  pure  water  and  a  magnificent  water- 
wax-,  connecting  the  Great  Lakes  with  the  Mis- 
sissippi and  tributaries  and  the  Gulf  of  Mexico. 

For  several  years  Mr.  Hurd  has  been  at  the 
head  of  the  Committee  of  Law  Reform  of  the  Illi- 
nois State  Bar  Association,  and  of  the  able  reports 
of  that  committee  in  favor  of  extending  the  Amer- 
ican policy  of  breaking  up  large  estates  through 
the  operation  of  the  laws  of  descent  and  wills,  by 
so  amending  the  laws  as  to  limit  the  amount  one 
niav  take  by  de.scent  or  will  from  the  same  per- 
son: and  in  favor  of  a  sxsteni  of  registration  of 
titles  which  will  make  transfers  of  real  estate  as 
simple,  inexpensive  and  secure  as  the  transfers  of 
])ersonal  pri)^x.-rty.  The  latter  of  tlie.se  reports 
has  already  borne  substantial  fruit  in  the  shape  of 
a  commission  to  con.sider  the  matter  of  transfers 
of  title,  which  was  created  b\-  the  action  of  the 
la.st  General  Assembly.  Of  that  conuuission  Mr. 
Hurd  was  chairman,  and  in  the  report  of  Decem- 
ber 10,  f892,  it  recommended  a  sy.stem  of  regis- 
tering titles  substantially  embodying  the  essential 
principles  of  the  Australian  or  Torrens  sy.stem. 
The  bill  recommended  to  the  convention  passed 
the  Senate,  but  was  defeated  in  the  House  of 
Representatives  of  the  Illinois  Legi.slatxire,  lack- 
ing onl\-  seven  votes.  howe\-er,  of  a  majority  and 
becoming  a  law.  Since  the  report  of  the  commis- 
sion. commis.sions  of  a  like  character  have  been 
raised  in  a  number  of  States,  and  the  bill  which 
was  written  bj-  Mr.  Hurd  bids  fair  to  become  the 
basis  of  bills  for  the  adoption  of  a  .system  in  the 
United  States. 

Among  the  charities  which  receive  Mr.  Hurd's 
attention  aud  aid  are  the  Childreu's  Aid  Society 


,  /.  A 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


417 


of  Chicago,  whose  work  it  is  to  find  homeless 
children  and  place  them  in  families  where  they 
will  be  tenderly  cared  for  and  reared;  and  also  the 
Conference  of  Charities  of  Illinois,  an  organiza- 
tion composed  of  all  charitable  societies.  He  is 
President  of  both  of  these  organizations. 


_=i 


^-^ 


EL. 


[^" 


0R.  THEODORE  HUBBARD,  the  finst 
Postmaster  of  Babcock's  Grove,  and  a  prom- 
inent citizen  of  Cook  County,  was  born 
in  Putney,  Vt. .  October  lo.  1803,  and  died  in 
Chicago,  Februar>-  i,  1S73.  His  parents  were 
Theodore  and  Dorothy  ( Wilson  t  Hubbard.  The 
family  is  descended  from  Edmund  Hubbard,  who 
was  boni  in  Hingham,  England,  about  1570,  and 
crossed  the  Atlantic  to  Charlestown,  Mass.,  in 
1633.  He  died  in  Hingham,  Mass.,  March  8, 
1646.  One  of  his  sons.  Rev.  Peter  Hubbard,  a 
dissentitig  clergyman,  founded  the  oldest  church 
now  in  existence  in  the  United  States,  located  at 
Hingham.  He  died  there  January  20,  1679,  in 
the  seventy-fifth  year  of  his  age,  and  the  fifty- 
second  year  of  his  ministry.  He  was  a  graduate 
of  Magdalen  College  of  Cambridge,  England. 
Among  Edmund  Hubbard's  descendants  are  num- 
bered many  eminent  judges,  ministers  and  educa- 
tors, and  the  present  Earl  of  Buckinghamshire, 
England,  is  a  descendant  of  the  same  family.  The 
Hobarts,  or  Huberts,  of  England  came  from  Nor- 
mandy during  the  reign  of  William  the  Conqueror. 
The  earliest  known  record  of  the  family  locates 
them  near  Dieppe,  Normandy,  in  1198.  They 
were  a  baronial  family  in  Norfolk,  England,  where 
John  Hobart  resided  in  1260.  One  of  his  de- 
scendants, James  Hobart,  was  made  a  Knight  of 
the  Sword  by  Henry  VII.  in  1504.  They  were 
created  baronets  in  161 1.  Our  subject  repre- 
sented the  eighth  generation  in  America.  The 
names  of  his  progenitors  in  direct  line  were  Ed- 
mund, Thomas,  Caleb,  Benjamin,  Peter,  Sr. , 
Peter,  Jr.,  and  Theodore. 

Peter  Hubbard,  Sr.,  died  near  Ft.  William  Hen- 
ry during  the  French  and  Indian  War,  of  wounds 
received  in  that  serA'ice.     His  son  was  an  Ensign 


in  a  New  Hampshire  company  during  the  Revo- 
lutionary War.  The  father  of  our  subject  was 
liorn  in  Kccne,  X.  II.,  October  25,  1774,  and 
died  in  Hartford,  \'t.,  February  15,  1814.  His 
wife  died  at  Babcock's  Grove,  Juh'  r6,  1840,  at 
the  age  of  sixty -seven  years. 

Doctor  Hubbard  was  the  fourth  in  their  famil\- 
of  seven  children.  He  was  married  November 
25,  1828,  to  Anne  Ward  Ballon,  who  was  born 
December  29,  1809,  in  Deerfield,  near  Utica,  N. 
Y.,  and  was  a  daughter  of  Ebenezer  and  Marana 
(Ward)  Ballou.  The  \\'ard  family  has  an  ex- 
tensive genealogical  history-,  which  can  be  traced 
back  to  1 1 30.  The  name  is  derived  from  "Gar" 
or  "Garde."  Ralph  de  Gar,  or  de  la  Warde,  flour- 
ished in  Norfolk,  England,  at  the  time  of  Henry 
II. 

Returning  to  the  personal  history  of  Dr.  Hub- 
bard, we  note  that  he  settled  in  Chicago  May  21, 
1S36,  and  about  a  year  later  went  to  DuPage 
County,  pre-empting  a  farm  near  the  present  vil- 
lage of  Glen  Ellyn.  A  few  years  later  he  was 
made  the  fir.st  Postmaster  of  Babcock's  Grove, 
keeping  the  oflice  in  his  hou.se  and  bringing  the 
mail  from  Bloomingdale  on  horseback.  In  1851, 
he  returned  to  Chicago,  where  he  engaged  in  the 
practice  of  medicine  until  his  death.  He  had  pre- 
viously studied  for  the  ministry,  but  later  entered 
the  medical  profession,  and  as  a  physician  se- 
cured a  liberal  patronage.  He  also  had  an  ex- 
tensne  knowledge  of  law,  and  was  a  man  of  more 
than  ordinary  intellectual  ability,  although  he 
had  little  opportunity  for  education  while  a  boy. 
F'or  several  years  he  served  as  County  Commis-. 
.sioner  of  DuPage  County. 

Of  the  children  of  Doctor  and  Mrs.  Hubbard, 
Augustus,  a  civil  engineer,  died  in  Amboy, 
111.,  in  April,  1865.  Carlos,  manager  of  a  wagon 
factory,  died  in  Chicago  at  the  age  of  forty  years. 
Oscar  died  in  Groesbeck,  Tex.,  in  April.  1877; 
Adolphus,  who  was  the  founder  of  the  Sons  ot  the 
American  Revolution  in  1879,  is  now  connected 
with  the  California  University  of  San  Francisco, 
and  is  a  member  of  many  historical  societies.  Ed- 
ward Clarence,  who  was  a  prominent  attorney  of 
Hartford,  Ky.,  died  in  Chicago,  June  27,  1887, 
at  the  age  of  forty-four  years.     He  was  a  mem- 


21 


4i8 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


ber  of  the  Thirteenth  Illinois  Infantn'  during  the 
late  war.  Enlisting  April  21.  1 861.  he  was  dis- 
charged June  18,  1864.  after  having  participated 
in  the  battles  of  Chickasaw  Bayou.  Arkansas  Post, 
Lookout  Mountain,  Missionary  Ridge,  siege  of 
Vicksburg,  and  other  engagements.  Ellen,  who 
died  soon  after  her  graduation  from  the  Chicago 
High  School,  and  Laura  complete  the  family. 

Mr.  Hubbard  was  a  life-long  Democrat,  but  all 
of  his  sons  support  the  Republican  part\- .  In  his  re- 
ligious views  he  was  a  Uni\ersalist.  Of  the  first 
Masonic  lodge  of  Chicago  he  was  a  charter  mem- 
ber and  was  made  an  honoran-  member  previous 
to  his  death.  Prominent  in  public  and  business  af- 
fairs, he  was  an  honored  and  highly  respected 
citizen,  who  for  man\  years  was  connected  with 
the  leading  interests  of  Chicago.  His  skill  and 
ability  as  a  physician  won  him  an  enviable  repu- 
tation, and  he  was  widely  known  as  a  man  of  ster- 
ling worth.  Mrs.  Hubbard  is  an  honorary  mem- 
l>er  of  Chicago  Chapter  of  the  Daughters  of  the 
American  Revolution,  and  is  honorary-  Vice-Pres- 
ident of  the  Daughters  of  1812.  She  is  al.so  a 
member  of  the  Historic  Council,  which  was  estab- 
lished to  keep  alive  the  memories  of  the  men  who 
gave  liberty  and  fraternit\-  to  the  western  world. 
She  now  resides  in  Glen  Ellyn  with  her  daughter 
Laura,  who  is  a  lady  of  intelligence  and  refine- 
ment, and  a  corresponding  member  of  the  Chi- 
cago Historical  Society. 


®- 


-^^f^l 


,[=-^ 


V  yiRS.  ANNA  V.  JONES,  widow  of  Benja- 
y  min  F.  Jones,  is  now  living  quietly  at  her 
y  home  on  Prospect  Avenue  in  Park  Ridge. 
Her  husband  was  bom  in  Philadelphia.  Pa., 
January  11.  1845,  and  was  the  son  of  Charles  S. 
and  Emeline  (Houston  1  Jones.  The  family  was  of 
Welsh  descent  on  the  paternal  side,  and  of  English 
extraction  on  the  maternal  side.  The  Jones  and 
Houston  families  lived  in  the  vicinity  of  Phila- 
delphia during  the  Revolutionary  War,  and  dur- 
ing that  struggle  a  Mrs.  Jones,  one  of  the  ances- 
tors of  our  subject,  was  baking  bread  when 
Washington  retreated   past  her    home,    followed 


by  the  British.  Some  of  the  troops  of  the  latter  en- 
tered her  house  and  got  her  bread,  fresh  and  hot. 
The  families  were  both  represented  in  the  Colonial 
service.  John  Houston,  grandfather  of  Benja- 
min F.  Jones,  was  Alderman  of  Chestnut  Hill 
in  1 801  and  1802,  and  as  .such  left  a  record  now 
in  possesion  of  the  Jones  family.  They  also 
have  a  chain  t%vo  hundred  years  old,  which  has 
been  handed  down  through  several  generations. 

The  lady  whose  name  heads  this  record  was 
in  her  maidenhood  Anna  Lightcap,  daughter  of 
Solomon  and  Sophia  i  Sechler  1  Lightcap,  residents 
of  Philadelphia  County,  Pa.  Her  father  was  a 
butcher  by  trade.  His  mother  belonged  to  a 
family  by  the  name  of  Rittinhouse,  that  came  to 
America  in  1686.  Many  of  its  members  became 
quite  distinguished  along  various  lines.  Anna 
Lightcap  was  torn  March  19,  1847,  ^"^  became 
the  wife  of  Benjamin  T.  Jones  on  Christmas  Day 
of  1867,  their  union  being  celebrated  in  Phila- 
delphia. To  them  were  born  six  children,  four 
of  whom  are  yet  living:  Charles  R.,  Benjamin  F., 
Elsie  I.  and  Jo.shua.  The  children  were  all  ed- 
ucated in  Chicago.  Charles  al.so  attended  the 
Nortlnve.stern  College,  of  Naperville,  and  is  a 
good  bu.siness  man. 

When  only  fifteen  years  of  age,  the  father  of 
this  family  enlisted  in  the  ser\-ice  of  his  country 
as  a  drummer-boy,  becoming  a  member  of  the 
Eighty-third  Pennsylvania  Infantry  in  July, 
1861.  He  was  wounded,  and  in  1864  was  taken 
prisoner.  He  was  confined  in  Andersonville  and 
Libby  Prisons  for  nine  months,  and  after  his  re- 
lea.se  he  was  made  First  Lieutenant  of  his  com- 
pany. The  fidelity  with  which  he  ser\-ed  the  in- 
terests of  the  Union  characterized  his  entire  life. 
For  some  years  he  was  a  publisher,  connected 
with  the  National  Publishing  Company.  He  had 
charge  of  the  western  branch  of  its  business,  and 
in  1867  removed  to  St.  Louis,  Mo.  The  follow- 
ing year  he  went  to  Chicago,  where  he  made  his 
home  until  1886.  He  then  went  to  Mar\-land,  but 
his  death  occurred  shortly  after,  on  the  i6th  of  Feb- 
ruary-. He  was  a  man  highh'  esteemed  by  those 
with  whom  business  and  social  relations  brought 
him  in  contact,  and  his  death  was  deeply  mourned. 
After  some  years  spent  in  Maryland,  Mrs.  Jones 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


419 


exchanged  her  farm  property  for  her  present 
comfortable  home  in  Park  Ridge,  where  she  and 
her  family  now  reside.  vShe  liolds  membership 
with  the  Congregational  Church,  and  is  a  lady 
whose  lovable  traits  of  character  have  gained  her 
many  friends. 


l^-h^ 


CS- 


[=^ 


III.LIAM  ZUETELL,  one  of  the  most  en- 
terprising and  stirring  business  men  of 
Edi.son  Park,  who  is  engaged  as  a  real- 
estate  dealer,  claims  Germany  as  the  land  of  his 
birth.  He  was  born  in  Prussia  on  the  15th  of 
April,  1.S51.  and  is  a  son  of  Theodore  Zuetell. 
In  compan>-  with  his  mother  he  came  to  America 
in  1865.  when  a  lad  of  fourteen  years.  They 
landed  in  New  York  City,  and  thence  came  west- 
ward to  Chicago,  which  was  then  the  home  of  his 
mother's  brother,  William  Colteryahn. 

Mr.  Zuetell  was  educated  in  the  public  .schools 
of  Chicago,  and  when  quite  young  he  began 
.spending  his  sununer  months  of  vacation  as  cash 
boy  in  a  large  dry-goods  .store  of  that  city.  Upon 
leaving  .school  he  entered  the  employ  of  C.  Ten 
Eick,  with  whom  he  continued  for  two  years.  On 
the  expiration  of  that  period  he  returned  to  the 
firm  where  he  had  worked  as  cash  boy,  and  was 
there  again  employed  for  two  years.  His  next 
position  was  with  the  firm  of  J.  \'.  Farwell  (S:Co., 
with  whom  he  continued  for-  six  \ears.  Duruig 
this  period  of  his  business  life  he  was  continually 
rising,  and  during  five  years  of  his  connection 
with  the  house  of  J.  \'.  Farwell  &  Co.  he  .served 
as  city  notion  Iniyer.  The  succeeding  year  was 
spent  as  traveling  salesman  for  the  firm  of  Field, 
Leiter  &  Co.,  after  which  he  began  bu.siness  for 
himself 

Mr.  Zuetell  embarked  in  the  grocery  trade  in 
Ravenswood,  but  his  venture  was  not  very  .suc- 
cessful, and  he  again  went  upon  the  road  as 
traveling  salesman,  to  which  work  he  devoted 
his  time  and  energies  for  five  years.  On  the  ex- 
piration of  that  period  we  once  more  find  him 
working  in  his  own  interest.  For  nearly  two 
years  he  carried  on  a  neck-wear  store,  and  then, 


in  1M89,  he  embarked  in  the  real-estate  bu.sine.ss. 
The  following  year  he  came  to  Edison  Park,  and 
is  now  serving  as  station  agent,  express  agent 
and  insurance  agent. 

.  On  the  i6th  of  July,  1877,  Mr.  Zuetell  married 
Miss  Matilda  B.  Siesveld.  The\-  have  three  chil- 
dren: Walter;  Edison,  who  was  the  fir.st  child 
born  in  Edison  Park,  and  in  consequence  was 
given  the  name:  and  Lola.  The  family  has  a 
pleasant  home  and  are  well  known  in  the  com- 
munity where  they  reside. 

Mr.  Zuetell  holds  membership  in  the  Ma.sonic 
fraternity,  and  himself  and  wife  belong  .  to  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church  of  Norwood  Park. 
In  politics,  he  votes  with  the  Republican  party, 
and  is  now  acceptably  and  creditably  filling  the 
office  of  Justice  of  the  Peace.  He  is  recognized 
as  one  of  the  wide-awake  and  leading  business 
men  of  Edison  Park,  and  is  doing  much  to  ad- 
vance the  interests  of  the  place.  Public-spirited 
and  progressive,  he  is  ever  found  in  the  front 
rank  of  any  enterpri.se  calculated  to  promote  the 
general  welfare. 


"Si 


:^~ 


eR.  O.  T.  MAXSON,  who  is  engaged  in  the 
practice  of  the  medical  profes.sion  in  vSouth 
Evanston,  has  Ijuilt  up  a  good  business,  for 
he  is  well  ver.sed  in  everything  connected  with 
the  .science  and  has  .spared  neither  labor  nor  ex- 
pense in  perfecting  himself  for  his  chosen  calling. 
His  skill  and  ability-  are  now  recognized,  and  he 
has  not  only  wau  a  liberal  patronage,  but  has  al.so 
gained  a  high  reputation  among  his  professional, 
brethren. 

The  Doctor  was  born  in  Centrexille,  Allegany 
County,  X.  V.,  March  29,  1S24,  and  is  one  of 
seven  children,  four  sons  and  three  daughters, 
who  were  born  unto  Joseph  and  Amelia  (Ward) 
Max.son.  Only  two  of  the  family  are  now  living, 
the  Doctor,  and  Caroline,  who  is  the  widow  of 
Dr.  J.  W.  Beardsley,  of  Miinieapolis,  Minn.  The 
parents  were  both  natives  of  Rhode  Island.  The 
father  was  a  trader,  farmer  and  merchant.  In 
1846,   he  removed  to  Bradford,   Wis.,   where  he 


420 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


lived  for  twenty-four  years,  his  death  occurring 
in  1864,  at  the  age  of  eighty-two.  His  wife 
passed  away  in  1846,  at  the  age  of  forty -six  years. 
Both  were  members  of  the  Universalist  Church. 
Thev  built  the  house  of  worship  in  Centreville, 
N.  v.,  and  for  two  years  paid  the  salan,-  of  the 
minister.  The  paternal  grandfather,  Joseph  Max-  ; 
son,  was  a  very  wealthy  man.  His  father  also 
bore  the  name  of  Joseph.  The  grandfather 
Ward  was  a  farmer  and  had  a  family  of  fifteen 
children,  all  of  whom  lived  to  be  married,  and 
nine  of  whom  died  in  1846. 

Orrin  T.  Maxson  was  reared  in  Centreville, 
X.  v.,  and  there  acquired  his  early  education. 
He  afterwards  attended  Rush  Medical  College,  in 
Chicago,  for  he  had  deterihined  to  make  the  prac- 
tice of  medicine  his  life  work,  and  was  graduated 
from  that  institution  in  the  Class  of  '49.  He 
then  established  a  ho.spital  in  Nevada,  Colo.,  in 
connection  with  Dr.  Clark,  and  was  at  that  place 
one  year,  after  which  he  went  to  the  mouth  of 
the  St.  Croix  River,  and  bought  out  the  old  fur 
company-  of  that  place.  He  there  platted  what 
afterwards  became  the  city  of  Prescott,  Wis.  He 
there  remained  for  fifteen  years,  and  during  most 
of  the  time  engaged  in  the  prosecution  of  his  pro- 
fession. 

In  1861,  the  Doctor  entered  the  service  of  his  i 
country,  joining  the  boys  in  Hue  of  Company  A, 
Twelfth  Wisconsin  Infantry.  He  served  until 
after  the  siege  of  Atlanta,  when  he  was  honorably 
discharged,  his  three-year  term  having  expired. 
He  held  the  rank  of  captain,  yet  most  of  the  time 
was  detailed  as  a  surgeon.  After  the  war  he  en- 
gaged in  practice  in  Waukegan  and  Chicago  for  | 
a  long  period,  seventeen  years  of  that  time  being 
spent  in  the  former  city.  Leaving  Waukegan  in 
1883,  he  removed  to  Evanston,  where  he  has 
since  made  his  home.  He  has  built  up  a  large 
practice,  and  his  success  is  well  merited. 

In  December,  1846,  Dr.  Maxson  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Miss  Eunice  McCray,  daughter  of 
Wilham  and  Candace  (  McKinney )  McCray,  na- 
tives of  Tolland,  Conn.  Five  children  have  been 
born  unto  them,  three  sons  and  two  daughters,  but 
Herrick,  Orrin  and  Almira  are  now  deceased. 
Orrin   Prescott,    who  was  the  third    in  order  of 


birth,  is  now  a  practicing  physician  of  Wauke- 
gan. He  married  Miss  Kittie  Sherman,  and  they 
ha\-e  four  children,  a  son  and  three  daughters, 
Eunora,  Evelyn,  Leta  and  Harold.  Amelia,  who 
was  the  youngest  of  the  Doctor's  family,  is  the 
widow  of  L.  L.  Knox,  and  now  lives  with  her  fa- 
ther in  Evanston.  She  has  two  children,  Orrin 
and  Helen. 

While    residing    in    Wisconsin,     Dr.     Max.son 
served  as  a  member  of  the  Legislature  for  .several 
vears,  and  was  chairman  of  the  railroad  commit- 
tee which   dispo.sed   of  the  land   grant.      He  was 
for  six  years  State  Regent  of  the  Normal  Schools 
of  Wiscon.sin,  which  included  all  the  colleges  and 
schools  that  had  Normal  classes  in  the  State.   Gov. 
Randall  was  a  particular  friend   of  the  Doctor's, 
and,  unsolicited,  appointed  him  County  Judge  of 
Pierce  Count>',  Wis.      In  politics,  he  was  in  earl\- 
life  a   Democrat,  .but  at  the  breaking  out  of  the 
war  he  joined  the  ranks  of  the  Republican  party 
and   has  since  been  one  of  its  stanch   advocates. 
In  his  official  duties  he  has  e\er  been  found  faith- 
ful   and  true,    endeavoring   to  .ser\e   the  best  in- 
terests of  the  people.      Both  himself  and  wife  are 
members  of  the    Congregational    Cliurch,    tlieir 
connection  covering  a  period  of  forty  years     The 
Doctor  is  a  Knight  Templar  Mason  and  also  be- 
,  longs  to  the    Odd    Fellows'   Society.     While  in 
Waukegan.  he  was  a  member  of  the  Lake  Coun- 
ty Medical  Society.     The  Doctor  owns  landed  in- 
terests in  various  parts  of  this  county,  and  a  home 
property  and  other  real  estate  in  Evanston. 


$+^! 


"IMOTHY  O'CONNELL,  Justice  of  the 
Peace  of  Evanston,  was  born  in  Quebec, 
_  Canada,  on  the  8th  of  March,  1831,  and  is 
a  son  of  James  and  Margaret  i  Roche)  O'Connell. 
His  parents  were  both  natives  of  Ireland,  and  in 
18 18  they  left  the  Green  Isle  of  Erin  to  make  a 
home  in  Canada.  They  had  two  children,  Tim- 
othy and  William,  but  the  latter  is  now  decea.sed. 
The  father  was  a  baker  in  Quebec,  and  there 
followed  that  business  until  his  death.  His  wife 
survived   him  some  time,  and  afterward  married 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


421 


again,  her  second  union  being  with  Hdward 
Shields,  who  also  died  in  Quebec.  Thcx  became 
the  parents  of  four  children,  one  of  whom  is  .still 
living,  James,  a  resident  of  Chicago.  After  the 
death  of  her  second  husband,  the  mother  of  our 
subject  came  to  Kvan.ston  to  make  her  home  with 
her  son  Timothy,  at  whose  house  she  died  in 
1886,  at  the  ripe  old  age  of  eighty-six  years.  I 
Both  parents  were  members  of  the  Catholic 
Church. 

Our  subject  is  descended  from  one  of  the  old 
families  of  Ireland.  His  paternal  grandfather, 
Timothy  O'Connell,  was  a  native  of  that  land, 
but  he  also  .spent  his  last  days  in  Canada,  where 
he  died  at  an  advanced  age.  His  family  num- 
bered six  children.  The  maternal  grandfather, 
William  Roche,  was  bom  in  Wexford,  Ireland, 
and  was  classed  among  the  rebels  in  the  War  of 
the  Rebellion  in  that  country,  in  1798.  He  was 
a  stone  mason  and  farmer.  Emigrating  to  Canada, 
he  spent  the  remainder  of  his  life  in  that  place, 
being  called  to  the  home  beyond  at  the  age  of 
eight}- four. 

Timothy  O'Connell  who.se  name  heads  this 
record  was  reared  and  educated  in  Quebec,  attend- 
ing the  common  .schools  of  that  country.  When 
his  school  life  was  ended,  he  became  a  professional 
culler  of  square  timber,  and  to  work  along  that 
line  devoted  his  energies  for  many  years. 

Ere  leaving  his  native  land,  Mr.  O'Connell  was 
married,  on  the  30th  of  January,  1866,  to  Miss 
Matilda  Long,  daughter  of  John  Long.  Seven 
children  were  bom  unto  them,  as  follow's;  Will- 
iam, who  married  Miss  Catherine  Kerevan,  and  is 
Assistant  Postma.ster  at  Evan.ston;  Edward  John; 
Mary  Ann;  Elizabeth;  Timothy  Joseph;  Margaret 
Frances;  Patrick  Henry,  who  died  at  the  age  of 
nine  years;  and  Nicholas  John.  The  mother  of 
this  family  was  called  to  her  final  rest  in  i886. 

In  1876,  Mr.  O'Connell  came  with  his  family 
to  the  United  States,  and  took  up  his  residence  in 
Evanston,  where  he  has  worked  at  various  occu- 
pations. He  served  as  Assistant  Asses.sor  one 
year,  did  .special  city  inspection  work,  and  was 
janitor  in  the  University  for  one  year.  In  the 
spring  of  1893,  our  subject  was  elected  Justice 
of  the  Peace,   which  position   he  now  fills.     He 


has  a  good  home  propert\  in  Evanston,  and  his 
family  of  children  live  with  him,  except  Wilham, 
who  now  has  a  home  of  his  own.  In  politics,  he 
is  a  supporter  of  the  Republican  party  and  its 
principles,  and  in  religious  belief  he  is  a  Catholic. 


_^ 


^H^ 


CS- 


\^~ 


y /lORTON  L.  PINNEY,  a  retired  farmer  now 
y  residing  in  Palatine,  is  so  well  known  in 
(^  this  community  that  he  needs  no  special  in- 
troduction to  our  readers,  for  he  has  lived  in  Cook 
County  since  1852.  Born  in  Hartford  County, 
Conn.,  December  27,  1830,  he  is  descended  from 
one  of  three  brothers,  natives  of  England,  who 
crossed  the  Atlantic  in  a  very  early  day  in  the 
history  of  this  country  and  located  in  New  Eng- 
land. The  family  first  settled  in  Mas.sachusetts, 
but  subsequently  its  representatives  removed  to 
Connecticut,  where  Luther  Pinney,  the  father  of 
our  subject,  was  born  and  reared.  He  there  mar- 
ried Fannie  Bartlett,  who  was  born  in  South  wick, 
Mass.  After  his  marriage  he  turned  his  attention 
to  fanning,  which  he  followed  in  the  Nutmeg 
State  through  out  his  entire  life.  His  death  oc- 
curred in  1858,  and  his  wife,  who  sur\-ived  him  a 
number  of  years,  passed  away  in  1878.  They 
weie  laid  to  rest  in  the  cemetery  near  their  old 
home. 

In  the  Pinney  family  were  two  .sons  and  five 
daughters  who  grew  to  mature  years  and  are  yet 
living.  Edward  Pnniey  resides  in  New  York 
City.  The  other  son  is  our  subject,  who  spent 
the  days  of  his  bo\hood  and  youth  in  his  parents' 
home  and  ac(|uired  a  good  education  in  the  public 
schools  of  his  native  vState.  P'or  a  time  he  suc- 
cessfully engaged  in  teaching  school  in  Bloom- 
field,  Conn.  The  tide  of  emigration  was  steadily 
flowing  westward,  and  in  the  autumn  of  1851 
Mr.  Pinney  landed  in  Illinois.  For  about  a  year 
he  engaged  in  tobacco  culture  in  Boone  Count\  , 
but  in  the  autunui  of  1852  he  again  went  to 
Connecticut,  and  .spent  the  winter  as  a  teacher  in 
Bloomfield.  The  following  spring  he  again  came 
to  this  .State,  and  after  a  time  engaged  in  rail- 
roading on   the  Northwest  Road.      In  the  spring 


422 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


of  1854,  he  went  to  Stony  Island,  and  during  the 
summer  superintended  a  company  of  men  who 
were  engaged  in  getting  out  stone  at  that  place. 
He  then  returned  to  Deer  Grove. 

On  the  13th  of  October,  1853,  Mr.  Pinney  went 
to  Iowa,  and  was  married  in  Fayette  County  to 
Miss  ClarindaH.  Cod\-,  a  native  of  this  State.  She 
was  one  of  the  fir.st  white  children  born  in  nortli- 
eastern  Illinois,  her  father,  Ezekiel  Cod>-,  a  native 
of  New  York,  having  been  one  of  the  earliest  .set- 
tlers of  this  locality.  After  their  marriage  Mr. 
Pinney  and  his  wife  returned  to  Cook  Count_\-,  and 
in  1854  he  engaged  in  railroading  on  the  North- 
western, near  Fox  River.  The  next  year  he  re- 
turned to  the  Hawkeye  State,  and  engaged  in 
railroading  near  Dubuque  for  about  a  year.  On 
the  expiration  of  that  period,  he  took  charge  ol 
the  Singer  &  Talcott  Stone  Quarry  at  Lamont, 
and  when  the  season  was  over  located  in  Cook 
County,  where  he  purchased  and  improved  a  farm 
in  Palatine  Township.  In  1865,  he  was  appointed 
by  the  Board  of  Supervisors  Warden  of  the  In- 
•sane  Asylum  and  Infirmary,  of  which  institution 
he  had  charge  for  four  years,  when  he  returned 
to  Palatine  and  located  upon  his  farm,  to  the  cul- 
tivation of  which  he  devoted  his  energies  until 
1883.  He  engaged  in  raising  tobacco  in  connec- 
tion with  the  regular  farm  products,  and  met  wuth 
fair  success.  He  drained  his  land  by  tile  where 
it  was  needed,  erected  good  buildings  upon  his 
farm,  and  was  recognized  as  one  of  the  leading 
and  representative  agriculturists  of  the  county. 
In  1883  he  rented  that  property,  purcliased  a 
residence  in  Palatine  and  has  since  here  made  his 
home,  in  the  enjoyment  of  the  rest  which  he  has 
so  truly  earned  and  richly  deserves. 

Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Pinney  were  born  three  sons 
and  two  daughters,  namely:  Ida  A.,  who  be- 
came the  wife  of  I.  B.  Fox,  and  is  now  deceased; 
Adeline;  Luther  E.,  of  Chicago;  Edward,  who  is 
married  and  is  engaged  in  ranching  in  Colorado; 
and  Morton,  who  was  accidentally  killed  at  the 
depot  in  Palatine  in  1886. 

During  his  forty-two  years'  residence  in  Cook 
County,  Mr.  Pinney  has  witnessed  the  growth  of 
Chicago  from  a  city  of  twenty-six  thousand  until 
it  has  become  the  second  in   size   in  the    Union. 


The  best  interests  of  town  and  county  have  ever 
found  in  him  a  warm  friend,  and  he  has  done  all 
in  his  power  to  advance  the  public  good.  In 
politics,  he  has  been  identified  with  the  Republi- 
can party  since  its  organization,  and  has  sup- 
ported each  of  its  Presidential  candidates  since 
ca.sting  his  fir.st  vote  for  John  C.  Fremont,  in  1856. 
His  fellow-townsmen,  appreciating  his  worth  and 
ability,  have  called  upon  him  to  serve  in  public 
office  and  he  has  been  .Supervisor,  Collector, 
Highway  Connuissioner  and  Trustee.  He  has 
also  frequently  served  as  a  delegate  to  the  differ- 
ent conventions  of  his  party.  His  tireless  energy, 
his  enterprise  and  his  good  i)usiness  management 
have  brought  him  a  comfortable  competence,  and 
his  declining  years  he  will  prol)al)ly  pass  in  Pala- 
tine, surrounded  by  all  of  the  necessaries  and 
man\-  of  the  luxuries  of  life. 


_^) 


-S) 


^-1-^^-= 


— a 


1 


[AMES  WILSON,  of  Palatine,  has  for  more 
than  half  a  century  been  identified  with  the 
growth  and  upbuilding  of  Cook  County,  and 
has  been  a  witness  of  its  changes  and  advancement. 
He  has  .seen  the  marks  of  frontier  life  give  way 
to  tho.se  of  advancing  civilization  and  progress; 
has  watched  the  introduction  of  railroads,  tele- 
graph and  telephone;  has  seen  towns  and  villages 
spring  up,  and  has  watched  the  marvelous  growth 
of  Chicago,  which  is  numbered  among  the  mira- 
cles of  the  age. 

Mr.  Wil.son  is  a  native  of  Schenectadj-  County, 
N.  Y.,  born  April  23,  1820,  and  is  of  Irish  de- 
scent. His  father,  Andrew  Wilson,  was  born  and 
reared  on  the  Emerald  Isle,  and  after  attaining  to 
mature  years  wedded  Jane  Falls,  al.so  a  native  of 
that  isle.  In  an  early  day  they  emigrated  to  the 
I'nited  .States,  locating  in  Schenectady  County, 
where  the>-  made  their  home  for  many  years. 
Mr.  Wilson  carried  on  carpentering  and  farming. 
In  the  autnmn  of  1840,  he  brought  his  family  to 
Illinois,  joining  his  son  James  in  Cook  Countw  In 
Palatine  Township  he  opened  up  a  farm,  and 
made  it  his  home  until  called  to  his  final  rest, 
about  1863.      His  wife  survived  him  some  years, 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


4^3 


and  passed  away  in  February,  1878.  A  substan- 
tial nionmneiit  marks  their  last  resting-place  in 
the  Palatine  Cemetery .  The\'  were  quite  active 
workers  in  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  and 
were  highly-resj>ecte<l  people.  Their  famih  num- 
bered nine  sons  and  four  daughters,  and  eight  are 
still  living.  Thomas,  who  was  a  farmer  of  Cook 
County,  died  at  the  age  of  seventy-five.  John, 
a  man  of  su{>erior  education,  was  graduated 
from  Oberlin  College,  and  then  followed  the  pro- 
fession of  teaching  for  a  number  of  years.  He 
afterward  located  on  a  farm  in  Ohio,  where  he 
died  at  the  age  of  sixty -three.  Alexander,  a 
farmer  of  Wheeling  Township,  Cook  County, 
died  in  1890.  Jane  is  the  «-idow  of  Samuel  McMil- 
len,  who  followed  farming  in  McHenrj-  County, 
but  is  now  deceased.  Da\nd  is  carrjing  on  agri- 
cultural pursuits  near  West  Union,  Iowa.  Henry 
is  living  a  retired  life  in  Parson,  Kan.  Maria  is 
the  wife  of  Ezra  Hyde,  of  Albert  Lea,  Minn. 
Matilda.  Mrs.  Martin,  is  a  widow,  and  resides 
in  Lake  Cit>-,  Minn.  William  is  living  on  the 
old  homestead  in  Palatine  Township,  and  com- 
pletes the  family. 

James  Wilson,  who  is  the  fourth  in  order  of 
birth,  spent  the  first  six  years  of  his  life  in  the 
Empire  State,  and  then  accompanied  his  parents 
to  this  county,  where  he  was  reared  among  the 
wild  scenes  of  the  frontier.  His  school  privileges 
were  ver}-  limited,  and  he  is  mostly  self-educated. 
In  December,  1839,  he  went  to  Joliet,  111.,  and 
the  following  year  began  work  on  the  canal.  In 
the  spring  of  1840  he  came  to  Cook  County,  and 
went  into  the  lead  mines,  where  he  was  em- 
ployed for  four  years.  Returning  in  1844,  he 
made  a  claim  of  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres, 
which  he  at  once  began  to  break  and  improve, 
and  of  which  he  made  one  of  the  finest  farms  in 
the  county.  He  erected  a  substantial  frame  resi- 
dence, and  in  the  spring  of  1861  built  a  large 
barn.  100x70  feet.  He  operated  his  land  for 
twenty-five  years,  and  the  neat  and  thrifty  ap- 
pearance of  the  place,  with  its  good  buildings  and 
well-kept  fences,  all  indicated  the  super\ision  of  a 
careful  ov^ner.  When  a  quarter  of  a  centur\-  had 
gone  by,  he  .sold  his  farm  and  removed  to  Pala- 
tine, where  he  erected  a  pleasant  and  commodious 


residence,  and  now  makes  his  home.  He  has 
since  been  cngagetl  in  raising  and  dealing  in 
nursery  stock,  and  the  business  under  his  con- 
trol has  proved  a  profitable  one.  He  also  man- 
ages a  farm,  having  purchased  other  land. 

In  June,  1845.  Mr.  Wilson  was  united  in  mar- 
riage with  Sophia  Fulkerson,  a  native  of  Xew 
York,  who  died  in  1869.  He  then  wedded 
Libby  Whitman,  who  was  born  in  Arlington 
Heights.  Cook  County,  and  is  now  deceased. 
They  had  two  children:  Rollin,  who  died  in  in- 
fancy: and  Libby.  at  home.  For  his  third  wife, 
Mr.  Wilson  chose  Miss  Nettie  H.  Helm,  and  her 
death  occurred  in  Arizona,  in  1892.  His  present 
wife  was  formerly  Miss  Desda  Robinson,  and 
their  marriage  was  celebrated  December  13,  1892. 

In  January,  18S6,  Mr.  Wilson  went  West  to 
Phcenix,  in  the  Salt  River  \'alley.  After  travel- 
ing over  the  countn,-  for  a  time,  he  selected  a  lo- 
cation, purchased  a  section  of  land,  and  secured 
eight  water-rights,  for  irrigation  is  used  entirely 
in  that  locahty.  He  planted  one  hundred  acres 
in  wheat  and  barley  and  one  hundred  acres  in 
clover.  He  then  sold  that  farm  and  bought  one 
hundred  and  eleven  acres  near  Tempe,  and  four 
lots  within  the  corporation  limits  of  the  town. 
He  also  bought  twenty  acres  of  land  six  miles 
from  Phoenix,  where  he  established  a  nursery. 
His  investments  in  the  West  proved  profitable, 
for  in  April,  1893,  he  sold  his  property  there  for 
Si 6,000.  Only  a  portion  of  his  time  was  spent 
in  the  West,  the  winter  months  being  passed  at 
his  home  in  Cook  County.  By  his  earnest  labors, 
he  has  risen  from  a  humble  financial  position  to 
one  of  affluence. 

In  early  life,  Mr.  Wil.son  was  an  old-line 
Whig,  and  his  first  Presidential  vote  was  cast  in 
Galena,  in  1840.  for  William  Henry  Harrison. 
On  the  organization  of  the  Republican  party  in 
1856,  he  joined  its  ranks,  and  has  since  been  one 
of  its  stanch  supporters.  To  a  number  of  official 
positions  he  has  been  elected,  and  has  always 
proved  a  capable  and  efficient  officer.  For  forty- 
five  \ears  he  has  been  a  consistent  member  and 
active  worker  in  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church. 
His  wife  holds  membership  with  the  Congrega- 
tional Church,  but  attends  ser\ice  with   her  hus- 


424 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


band.  A  life  well  spent  and  a  career  \vortli>-  of 
emulation  have  won  for  Mr.  Wilson  the  respect  of 
all  with  whom  business  or  social  relations  have 
brought  him  in  contact. 


=-=m^-^'d 


y/lKS.  MARY  HARRISON,  who  is  living  a 
y  (|uiet  and  retired  life  in  Park  Ridge,  is  num- 
(iJ  liered  among  the  pioneer  settlers  of  North- 
eastern Illinois.  For  half  a  centurA'  she  has  been 
a  resident  of  Cook  Count>-.  and  has  .seen  the  won- 
derful growth  and  dex'elopnient  of  this  region. 
She  was  born  on  the  gth  of  September,  1829,  in 
England,  where  her  early  girlhood  days  were 
pas.sed.  Her  father  was  John  Henley,  and  his 
famil)-  numbered  eight  children:  John,  now  a  res- 
ident of  Iowa;  Mary,  whose  name  heads  this  rec- 
ord; Frederick,  who  is  living  in  Northfield; 
Thomas,  whose  home  is  in  California;  Albert,  a 
resident  of  Chicago;  Charles,  a  farmer  of  Iroquois 
County,  111.;  and  Clara,  who  is  living  in  Wat- 
.seka.   111. 

In  1842,  the  father  with  his  family  started  for 
the  New  World.  At  Liverpool  the\-  boarded  the 
sailing-vessel  "Lincoln,"  commanded  by  Capt. 
Lincoln,  and  for  seven  weeks  and  four  days  were 
upon  the  broad  Atlantic.  Mrs.  Harri.son  says 
she  was  sorry  to  see  land,  for  she  had  learned  to 
love  the  sea  and  did  not  wish  to  leave  it.  The\- 
lauded  at  New  York  City,  and  soon  after,  by 
way  of  the  Hud.son  River  and  Erie  Canal,  pro- 
ceeded to  Buffalo,  where  they  took  a  steamer  on 
the  Lakes  for  Chicago.  When  they  reached  their 
destination,  they  found  nothing  but  a  few  sheds 
where  the  piers  are  now  located.  Mrs.  Harrison 
has  seen  Chicago  in  all  its  phases:  first  as  a  mere 
village;  then  as  a  mighty  city ;  again  as  a  va.st  ruin 
under  the  devastating  power  of  fire:  and  now  as 
the  metropolis  of  the  We.st. 

Six  years  before  the  arrival  of  the  Henley  fam- 
ily, Robert  Dewes  had  emigrated  from  Lincoln, 
England,  to  America,  and  located  in  Chicago. 
He  formed  the  acquaintance  of  Mi.ss  Henley,  and 
in  Januarj-,  1845,  they  were  married.  Four  sons 
and  three  daughters  were  born  unto  them,  name- 


ly: John  D.  and  William,  who  follow  farming; 
Robert,  a  retired  fanner, who  since  1892  has  made 
his  home  in  Ir\-ing  Park;  Elizabeth'  Ann,  wife  of 
Alfred  Oldfield;  Jennie,  widow  of  Mr.  Reynolds, 
who  was  killed  on  their  wedding  tour;  Amelia, 
wife  of  William  Tine,  who  is  living  in  Chicago; 
and  Nina,  widow  of  Joseph  Ohlinger.  The  father 
of  this  family  was  called  to  his  final  rest  in  1866. 
On  the  24th  of  May,  1874,  Mrs.  Dewes  became 
the  wife  of  John  Harrison,  a  farmer  and  early 
settler  of  this  communitw  His  brother,  Thomas 
Harrison,  aided  in  building  the  Erie  Canal.  John 
located  near  Elk  Grove  in  184;^,  and  contiiuied  a 
resident  of  northeastern  Illinois  until  called  to 
the  home  beyond  He  died  in  March,  1890, 
at  the  advanced  age  of  eighty-nine  years,  and 
was  buried  on  Ela.ster  Sunday  b>'  the  river  side, 
near  Niles,  where  many  of  the  old  settlers  are 
sleeping  to-day.  He  left  his  wife  considerable 
property,  which  is  located  in  and  around  Park 
Ridge.  She  looks  after  her  own  interests  and  in 
the  management  of  affairs  displays  excellent 
business  ability.  She  has  long  been  a  resident 
of  this  community,  and  is  well  known  among  the 
old-time  settlers  of  the  countv. 


=-l-^H-^ 


'JIEORGE  bog  art,  who  holds  the  position 
__  of  City  Clerk  in  Evanston,  and  is  one  of  the 
^  enterprising  and  progre.ssive  men  of  this 
place,  has  spent  his  entire  life  in  this  part  of  Illi- 
nois. He  has  the  honor  of  being  a  native  of 
Chicago,  where  his  birth  occurred  on  the  28th  of 
August,  1863.  His  parents,  Lorenzo  and  Anna 
(Eiden)  Bogart,  came  to  Evanston  in  1S64.  Both 
are  now  deceased. 

Our  subject  was  only  a  year  old  at  the  time  of 
the  removal.  He  was  here  reared  and  educated, 
attending  the  public  .schools  of  this  place,  and 
also  receiving  private  instruction.  In  1879,  at 
the  age  of  sixteen  years,  he  entered  the  Evanston 
postoffice,  and  creditably  and  acceptably  .sen-ed 
as  Assistant  Postmaster  until  1893.  .His  long- 
continued  sersMce  in  that  position  is  a  high  testi- 
monial to  his  ability  and  fidelity.      In  the  spring 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL    RECORD. 


425 


of  1893  he  was  electetl  City  Clerk  by  an  over- 
whelming majority,  and  since  entering  the  oflfice 
has  proven  himself  worthy  of  the  trust  reposetl  in 
him  by  his  election. 

Mr.  Bogart  po.s.se.s,ses  many  of  the  sterling  qual- 
ities of  his  German  ancestors.  His  ptarents  were 
both  natives  of  Germany,  and  he  is  their  only 
child.  He  has  made  the  best  of  his  opfKirtunities. 
and  that  he  is  trustworthy  and  has  the  confidence 
of  the  community  is  shown  by  the  flattering  ma- 
jority he  received  when  elected  City  Clerk.  In 
religious  belief,  he  is  a  Catholic;  in  politics,  he  is 
a  stalwart  Republican;  and  socially,  he  is  a  mem 
ber  of  the  Business  Men's  Association.  He  is 
regarded  as  one  of  the  representative  young  men 
of  the  city,  and  has  the  esteem  of  a  large  circle  of 
friends. 


y  /  IL.\X  REYNOLDS  is  engaged  in  merchan- 
y  Using  in  Palatine,  as  a  dealer  iu  shelf  and 
(3  hea\y  hardware,  agricultural  implements. 
wagons,  buggies,  etc..  and  is  recognized  as  one 
of  the  leading  business  men  of  the  place.  Bom 
on  the  1 6th  of  Januar>-.  1845,  iu  Bennington 
Countj-.  Vt..  he  is  a  son  of  Benjamin  C.  and 
Harriet  '  Andrews'  Reynolds,  the  former  a  native 
of  Bennington  County.  Vt..  and  the  latter  of  Rut- 
land County.  The  father  was  a  farmer  by  occu- 
pation, and  for  a  number  of  years  followed  that 
pursuit  in  the  Green  Mountain  State.  In  1857. 
he  decided  to  emigrate  westward,  and  made  his 
way  to  Illinois.  The  first  \ear  after  his  arrival 
was  spent  in  DuPage  County,  and  in  185S  he  lo- 
cated ujxjn  land  in  the  southern  part  of  Cook 
Count\-.  where  he  opened  up  a  farm,  continuing 
its  development  until  i  S60.  when  he  went  to  Pal- 
atine Township,  where  he  carried  on  agricultural 
pursuits  for  some  years.  His  last  days,  however, 
were  spent  in  Boone  County.  Iowa,  where  he 
pa.ssed  away  on  the  8th  of  January.  1891.  His 
widow  still  sunnves  her  husband,  and  is  now  liv- 
ing in  Palatine. 

The  gentleman  whose  name  heads  this  record 
was  a  vouth  of  onlv  thirteen  vears  when  he  came 


to  Illinois,  in  1S5S.  with  his  parents.  Here  he 
grew  to  manhood  and  received  good  educational 
advantages.  After  arriving  at  years  of  maturity, 
he  was  appointed,  in  1S65,  as  mail  agent,  first 
.serving  in  that  capacit>-  on  the  Illinois  Central 
Railroad,  making  the  run  between  Chicago  and 
Cairo.  For  twenty-four  years  he  was  in  the 
Government  mail  service,  running  on  different 
lines,  and  his  faithfulness  and  efficienc\-  are  indicat- 
ed by  his  long  term .  When  he  resigned  his  posi- 
tion in  1 88  7.  he  was  one  of  the  oldest  mail  agents 
in  the  Government  employ,  having  but  one  su- 
perior in  years  of  ser\ice  in  that  line. 

On  the  2d  of  Januan.-.  1867.  in  Cook  County, 
Mr.  Reynolds  was  united  in  marriage  with  Miss 
Emma  N.  R.  Chantrill.  a  native  of  New  York, 
and  a  daughter  of  Matthew  Chantrill.  one  of  the 
honored  early  settlers  of  Cook  County,  who  here 
located  in  1849.  Mr.s.  Reynolds  was  reared  to 
womanhood  in  this  locality.  She  is  a  lady  of 
good  education,  and  previous  to  her  marriage 
successfiilly  engaged  in  teaching.  To  her  hus- 
band she  has  been  a  faithfiil  companion  and  help- 
mate, and  in  the  community  where  she  lives  she 
has  many  warm  friends. 

On  leaving  the  Government  employ  in  1887. 
Mr.  Reynolds  returned  to  Palatine,  and  engaged 
in  the  hardware  business.  Three  years  previous 
he  had  formed  a  partnership,  and  the  firm  opened 
a  mercantile  establishment  in  Palatine.  They 
have  since  built  a  large  store  and  fitted  it  up  \\4th 
all  kinds  of  shelf  and  heavy  hardware.  They 
also  deal  in  agricidtural  implements,  wagons, 
buggies,  etc.,  and  are  enjoying  a  fine  trade,  which 
has  constantl\-  increased  from  the  beginning. 
Their  business  success  is  well  merited. 

In  his  political  views.  Mr.  Reynolds  is  a  Repub- 
lican, having  been  identified  with  that  party 
since  casting  his  first  Presidential  vote  for  Gen. 
U.  S.  Grant,  in  1868.  He  takes  quite  an  active 
interest  in  piolitics.  has  served  as  a  delegate  to 
both  State  and  county  conventions,  and  is  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Count>-  Central  Committee.  In  the 
spring  of  1893,  he  was  elected  Suf)er\Msor  of  Pal- 
atine Township,  and  is  now  one  of  the  efficient 
and  capable  members  of  the  Board  of  Supervisors 
of  Cook  Counts-.     He  has  alwavs  labored  for  the 


426 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


best  interests  of  the  community,  and  his  heart>- 
support  and  co-operation  ha\-e  ever  been  given  to 
those  interests  whicli  are  calculated  to  advance 
the  general  welfare.  Socially,  he  is  connected 
with  the  Masonic  fraternity  and  the  Independent 
Order  of  Mutual  Aid.  He  is  recognized  as  a  man 
of  good  business  ability  and  upright  character, 
and  is  numbered  among  the  progressive  and  val- 
ued citizens  of  the  community. 


■=1 


1^+^i 


[S_ 


"SJ 


gH.  LANDWER,  a  practical  and  progressive 
farmer  living  in  Harrington,  claims  Ger- 
mau\-  as  the  land  of  his  birth.  He  was  born 
July  21,  1824,  and  grew  to  manhood  in  his  na- 
tive country.  He  there  acquired  a  good  educa- 
tion in  the  connnon  schools.  In  the  Fatherland 
he  remained  until  twenty-four  years  of  age,  when, 
with  the  hope  of  bettering  his  financial  condition, 
he  bade  adieu  to  the  scenes  of  his  boyhood  and 
friends  of  his  youth  and  sailed  for  the  New  World, 
taking  pas.sage  at  Bremen  on  a  ve.ssel  bound  for 
New  Orleans.  In  May,  1840,  anchor  was  drop- 
ped in  the  harbor  of  the  Crescent  City,  and  Mr. 
Landwer  made  his  way  up  the  Mississipi)i  River 
to  St.  Louis,  and  thence  to  Chicago,  where  he  ar- 
rived in  the  month  of  June. 

Our  subject  secured  work  as  a  farm  hand  in 
Cook  County,  and  was  thus  employed  for  three 
years  and  four  months,  when,  with  the  capital  he 
had  acquired  through  his  indu.stry,  perseverance 
and  economy,  he  purchased  a  tract  of  eighty  acres 
of  raw  land,  which  he  at  once  began  to  improve 
and  cultivate.  He  built  a  residence,  plowed  and 
planted  hts  land,  and  in  course  of  time  abundant 
harvests  were  gathered.  As  his  financial  re- 
sources have  been  increa.sed,  he  has  extended  the 
boundaries  of  his  fann.  until  it  now  comprises  two 
hundred  acres  of  valuable  land,  under  a  high  state 
of  cultivation  and  well  improved.  He  owns  an- 
other fann  a  mile  and  a-half  to  the  south,  com- 
prising one  hundred  and  thirty  acres,  which 
yields  to  him  a  good  income. 

In  1852  occurred  the  marriage  of  Mr.  Land- 
wer and   Miss   Hannah    Miller,    a   native  of  Ger- 


mans.  The\  had  one  daughter,  Haimah,  who 
grew  to  womanhood  and  was  married,  but  her 
death  occurred  about  a  year  later.  Mrs.  Landwer 
also  died,  and  our  subject  afterwards  married  Rike 
Rieke,  who  was  born  in  Germany.  They  have 
eight  children:  Fred,  wIkj  is  now  .successfully  en- 
gaged in  farming  in  Harrington  Township;  Mary, 
wife  of  John  Broomcamp,  an  agriculturist  of  the 
.same  township;  Miiniie,  wife  of  Emiel  Mehr,  of 
Cook  County;  Henr\-  A.,  Emma,  Lydia,  Samuel 
and  Martha,  who  are  still  with  their  parents. 

In  his  political  views,  Mr.  Landwer  has  been  a 
Republican  since  ca.sting  his  first  Presidential  \ote 
for  John  C.  Fremont  in  1856.  He  was  elected 
and  served  as  Highway  Commissioner  for  .several 
years,  proving  an  able  and  competent  officer.  He 
holds  membership  with  the  Barrington  P^vangel- 
ical  Church.  For  a  period  of  forty -five  years  he 
has  resided  in  Cook  County,  and  is  numbered 
among  the  honored  pioneers  of  the  community. 
His  life  has  been  well  and  worthily  spent,  his  bus- 
iness has  been  characterized  by  honorable  and 
.straightforward  dealing,  and  his  career  has  won 
the  confidence  and  good-will  of  all.  He  may 
truly  be  called  a  self-made  man,  for  he  started 
out  for  himself  empty-handed,  dependent  entirely 
upon  his  own  resources.  By  careful  attention  to 
the  details  of  his  business,  by  indu.stry  and  well- 
directed  efforts,  he  has  accunuilated  two  valuable 
farms  and  is  numbered  among  the  sub.stantial 
farmers  of  Cook  County. 


_=]. 


^+^ 


[^ 


0 


"=) 


lAXIEL  N.  HAVt;XS,  who  is  now  living  a 
retired  life  in  Barrington,  was  for  many 
years  numbered  among  the  enterprising  and 
substantial  farmers  of  Cook  County.  He  is  a 
native  of  New  York,  his  birth  having  occurred  in 
the  town  of  Ellisburgh,  Jefferson  County,  in  Jul}-, 
1 8 19.  His  father,  Samuel  Havens,  was  a  native 
of  Massachusetts,  and  when  a  young  man  went  to 
New  York,  where  he  married  Lydia  Strong.  He 
was  a  blacksmith  by  trade,  and  followed  that 
business  in  Jefferson  and  Oneida  Counties  for 
.some  vears.      In  the  War  of  1812  he  served  as  a 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


427 


soldier.  Iii  lattT  liff,  he  emijirated  tn  Micliij^aii, 
locating  in  Haii\  Cmuitx  ,  when.-  his  last  years 
were  pas.setl. 

Under  the  parental  roof,  I).  X.  Havens  spent 
the  days  of  his  boyhood,  and  in  his  father's  smithy 
he  learned  his  trade,  which  he  tollowed  dnriiij; 
earh'  life.  His  edncation  was  hegnn  in  the  com- 
mon schools  and  completed  in  the  acadeni\-  in 
Jefferson  Connty.  The  \ear  1S44  witnessed  his 
emigration  westward.  He  located  in  Chicago, 
where  he  worked  at  hlacksniithing  for  a  few 
months,  and  then  went  to  Harrington  Township, 
where  he  purchased  a  claim  of  one  hundred  and 
sixty  acres  of  raw  land.  With  characteristic  en- 
ergy, he  began  to  improve  and  cultivate  this. 
He  built  a  small  frame  residence,  and,  opening  up 
a  good  farm,  continued  to  devote  his  energies  to 
its  further  improvement  until  1877.  The  first 
home  was  replaced  by  a  substantial  residence,  a 
large  barn  was  erected,  and  all  the  conveniences 
and  accessories  of  a  model  fann  were  supplied. 
There  were  many  hardships  and  trials  to  be  borne 
in  those  early  days,  but  he  patiently  met  them, 
and  at  last  the>-  were  overcome.  In  1877,  1^^ 
rented  his  farm  and,  jjurchasing  one  adjoining, 
took  up  his  residence  thereon,  making  it  his  home 
until  1887,  when  he  removed  to  Barrington, 
where  he  ha.s  since  lived  retired,  enjoying  the  rest 
which  he  has  so  truly  earned  and  richly  deserves. 

Mr.  Havens  was  married  in  Cook  County,  in 
1850,  to  Miss  Rachel  Claflin,  a  native  of  vSt.  Law- 
rence County,  X.  v.,  and  a  daughter  of  Walter 
Claflin,  who  is  numbered  among  the  pioneer 
.settlers  of  Cook  Connt\-.  The  lady  was  reared 
and  educated  in  St.  Lawrence  County.  She  died 
in  1 88 1  and  was  laid  to  rest  in  Barrington  Ceme- 
tery. In  the  famil\  were  five  .sons  and  five 
daughters  who  grew  to  mature  years:  O.  D.,  a 
substantial  farmer  living  near  Libertyville,  111.; 
F.  G.,  a  merchant  of  IClgin;  Lillie,  at  home: 
Emma,  wife  of  Robert  Comstock,  of  Barrington; 
Mary,  who  died  in  1889,  at  the  age  of  twenty 
years;  D.  E. ,  who  is  engaged  in  the  dairy  business 
in  Anderson,  Ind. ;  Martha,  Willie  and  Walter, 
all  of  whom  reside  in  Anderson;  and  Frances,  the 
wife  of  Merritt  Prouty,  a  substantial  farmer  of 
Barrington  Township. 


For  a  iialf-centnr\  ,  .Mr.  Havens  has  resided  in 
Cook  County,  witnessing  its  growth  and  develop- 
ment, and  aiding  in  its  progress  and  advancement. 
His  sup]iorl  and  co-operation  are  ever  given  to 
those  entcriirises  which  are  calculated  to  prove  of 
public  benefit.  He  has  been  identified  with  the 
Republican  jiarty  since  its  organization  in  1856. 
F'ormerly,  he  was  an  old -line  \\'hig,  but  his  first 
\()te  was  ca.st  for  Martin  \'an  Huren.  He  has 
lived  the  life  of  a  farmer,  (juiet  and  una.ssuming, 
and  by  an  honorable,  u])right  career  has  won  the 
respect  and  confidence  of  all  with  whom  business 
or  .social  relations  have   brought   him  in  contact. 


'^JKORGE  SIMPSOX,  who  is  engaged  in  deal- 
_  ing  in  coal  and  wood,  and  also  in  general 
^  teaming  in  Evanston,  was  born  in  Babshire, 
.Scotland,  February  15,  1836,  His  grandfather, 
Robert  Simpson,  .spent  his  entire  life  in  that  coun- 
try, and  died  at  an  ad\'anced  age.  His  father, 
Robert  Simpson,  Jr.,  was  born  in  the  .same  coun- 
try, and  in  early  life  learned  the  stone  mason's 
trade,  which  he  followed  for  .some  time,  but  his 
later  years  were  spent  as  a  fanner.  He  married 
Mi.ss  Ro.sann  Lawson,  whose  father  was  a  farmer 
of  Scotland,  and  there  died  at  an  advanced  age. 
Eight  children  were  born  unto  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Simpson,  four  .sons  and  four  daughters,  of  whom 
seven  are  yet  living,  namely:  Ivllen,  the  wife  of 
James  Steel:  Barbara,  the  widow  of  Joseph  Davis, 
of  Chicago;  James,  who  is  lixing  in  Portland,  Ore: 
George,  who  makes  his  Imnic  in  Exanston:  Robert, 
Jennie  and  .Andrew,  all  of  whom  make  their  home 
in  l-C\anston.  Ro.sann  is  deceased.  In  1S34,  the 
family  crossed  the  Atlantic  to  .America,  locating  in 
Libert>\ille,  Lake  County,  where  the  father  died 
XoNcniber  22,  1S53,  at  the  age  of  fifty-two  years. 
His  wife  is  still  living,  at  the  age  of  eighty- 
eight  years,  and  now  makes  her  home  in  F;\anston 
with  her  daughter  Jennie.  She  is  a  member  of 
the  Presbyterian  Church,  to  which  her  husband 
also  belonged. 

During  his  infancy,  our  subject  was  brought  to 
this  country,  and  upon  a  farm  in  the  town  of  Lib- 


428 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


ert\'\'ille  he  was  reared  to  manhood.  His  educa- 
tional privileges  were  those  afforded  by  the  com- 
mon schools.  In  1852,  at  the  age  of  sixteen 
years,  he  started  for  California,  and,  journeying 
bv  land  and  water,  at  length  reached  his  destina- 
tion. He  spent  about  ten  years  in  that  State, 
engaged  in  mining,  freighting  and  farming,  and 
in  the  spring  of  1862  went  to  British  Columbia, 
where  the  succeeding  three  years  of  his  life  were 
passed.  He  afterwards  spent  some  time  in  Wash- 
ington Territon.-  and  Montana.  In  1877,  he  re- 
turned to  Illinois,  locating  in  Evanston,  where 
he  has  made  his  home  continuously  since.  He 
followed  various  pursuits  until  1886,  when  he 
bought  the  coal  business  of  D.  Rutter,  and  since 
that  time  has  engaged  as  a  dealer  in  coal  and 
wood.     He  also  does  general  teaming. 

On  the  14th  of  August,  1857,  in  California, 
Mr.  Simpson  married  Miss  Elizabeth  Quick, 
daughter  of  John  and  Martha  Quick;  He  was 
again  married,  in  April,  1885,  to  Mrs.  Loyisa 
Bowers,  a  daughter  of  Hugh  McClellan.  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Simpson  have  a  pleasant  home  in  Evans- 
ton,  and  he  also  owns  other  city  property.  In 
politics,  he  is  a  supporter  of  the  Republican  party. 
Socialh".  he  is  a  member  of  Evanston  Lodge  No. 
673,  I.  O.  O.  F;  and  the  Ft.  Dearborn  En- 
campment, of  Chicago.  His  wife  belongs  to  the 
Baptist  Church.  They  are  both  highly  respected 
people,  and  have  a  wide  circle  of  friends  in  this 
comm  unity. 


■^  i=i. 


^f^[ 


yyilCHAEL  H.  BROWN,  who  is  now  ser\- 
y  ing  as  Trustee  of  Des  Plaines.  is  a  member 
(9  of  the  firm  of  Brown  &  Keates.  contractors 
and  builders.  This  firm  has  a  wide  reputation 
for  the  quality  of  its  work,  and  in  consequence 
has  built  up  a  good  business.  Mr.  Brown  is 
numbered  among  the  native  sons  of  Cook  County, 
for  he  was  born  in  Elk  Grove,  on  the  26th  of  No- 
vember, 1858,  and  is  the  third  in  order  of  birth  in 
a  family  of  four  children,  whose  parents  were 
John  and  Phylipina  (Lindiman)  Brown.  The 
father  was  a  farmer  by  occupation,    and  in    1857 


removed  from  New  York  to  Illinois,  settling  at 
Elk  Grove.  There  the  family  resided  until  1862, 
when  they  removed  to  Maine  Township.  The 
daughters  of  the  household  were:  Anna,  who  is 
now  decea.sed;  Bertha,  wife  of  Henry  Brendecke, 
of  Ferg^is  Falls,  Minn.:  and  Phylipina,  also  de- 
ceased. 

After  coming  to  Des  Plaines,  Mr.  Brown  worked 
at  the  carpenter's  trade,  being  employed  by 
Michael  Ahbe  for  one  year,  and  by  Frank  Whit- 
comb  for  the  same  length  of  time.  He  was  only 
thirteen  years  of  age  when  he  began  that  work. 
In  1874  he  carried  the  mail  from  Des  Plaines  to 
East  Wheeling,  and  to  East,  South  and  West 
Northfield,  receiving  $100  a  year  for  the  same. 
In  1875  and  1876,  he  worked  on  a  farm  through 
the  summer  months,  and  in  the  winter  season  at- 
tended the  schools  of  Des  Plaines,  meeting  his 
expenses  with  the  money  he  had  previously 
earned.  In  the  summer  of  1877  he  worked  in  a 
pres,sed-brick  yard,  and  in  the  winter  he  again 
worked  for  his  board.  During  the  summer  of 
1878  he  was  employed  as  coachman  for  Mr. 
Knott. 

In  the  spring  of  1880  we  find  Mr.  Brown  in 
Chicago,  working  for  F.  W.  Heidemann,  in  a 
court-plaster  factory.  He  there  remained  until 
July.  1882.  when  he  went  to  Fergus  Falls,  Minn., 
where  he  engaged  in  farming  for  six  months. 
On  the  expiration  of  that  period  he  returned  to 
Des  Plaines,  and  in  the  spring  of  1883  he  again 
began  carpenter  work  at  this  place,  continuing 
alone  until  February-,  1889,  when  he  formed  a 
partnership  with  Thomas  Keates.  as  a  contractor 
and  builder.     This  connection  .still  continues. 

On  the  8th  of  February,  1885,  Mr.  Brown  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Wilhelmina  Senne, 
and  they  have  become  the  parents  of  fi\e  children, 
two  sous  and  three  daughters:  Waldemar.  now 
deceased;  Albert,  Mabel,  Lydia  and  Theresa,  all 
yet  at  home.  They  have  a  pleasant  home  in  Des 
Plaines,  which  is  owned  b\"  Mr.  Brown,  who  also 
has  a  good  farm  of  one  hundred  and  three  acres 
in  Maine  Town.ship. 

Our  subject  is  connected  with  several  .social  or- 
ganizations. In  1883  he  became  a  member  of 
Bitruvious  Lodge  No.  81,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.;  he  is  a 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RirORD. 


4-'.i 


charter  iiieiiilK.-r  urCmirt  Maine  No.  2_\\,  I.  L).  U. 
K. :  a  charter  iiienilwr  of  Gladiator  I.tKlne  No. 
45t).  K.  P.:  and  is  Treasurer  of  the  Cicrnian 
Benevolent  S«»ciety.  His  first  Presidential  v«>te 
was  cast  for  James  A.  Garfield,  and  he  has  si  nee 
lK«n  a  Republican.  He  was  el(.x-te<l  Town  Col- 
lector in  iSqi.  an<l  X'illane  Trustee  in  the  si)ring 
i>f  1 89 J.  Both  of  these  oflice>  he  still  fills,  and 
di.scharges  the  duties  coiniected  therewith  in  a 
prompt  and  al>le  manner.  He  holds  memlx-rship 
with  the  German  Kvannelical  Church,  and  is  its 
Treasurer.  Mr.  Brown  is  a  puhlicspiritcd  and 
projjres.sive  citi/en,  whose  worth  and  ability  are 
recognized.  He  takes  a  commendable  interest  in 
everything  jx-rtaining  to  the  jiublic  welfare,  and 
it  is  with  plea.sure  that  we  present  to  our  readers 
this  record  of  his  life. 


m«jriKlv  DINGKK  makes  his  home  in  Rav- 
?\  en.swood.  and  is  <me  of  the  prominent  and 
VJJ/  influential  citizens  of  Cook  County.  He  is 
at  the  head  of  one  of  the  leading  industries  of  the 
community ^a  pickle  factory — and  his  bu.siness 
proves  not  only  a  profitable  investment  to  him- 
self, but  adds  materially  to  the  pros]K-rit\-  of  the 
community,  for  it  furnishes  empUn  nieiit  to  many 
hands. 

Mr.  I)ingee  is  a  native  of  New  York.  He  wa-» 
Iwni  in  \Vestche>ter  County,  on  the  iKthofOcto- 
l)er,  18 1«,  and  is  a  son  of  Solomon  and  Nancy 
(Wright)  Dingee.  who  were  also  natives  of  the 
Hmpire  State.  The  family  is  of  French  origin, 
and  wa.s  founded  in  America  in  the  seventeenth 
ctfntury  by  ancestors  who  locatetl  in  Westchester 
County,  N.  V.  The  grandfather.  Sanuiel  Dingee. 
was  Ijoni  there  in  1747,  during  the  |>eri(Kl  of  the 
Indian  War.  The  father.  Samuel  Dingee,  was 
a  farmer  by  occupation,  and  the  lK)yhood 
and  y«nith  of  our  subject  were  s|>ent  uixni 
bis  father's  farm.  During  the  winter  season 
he  attended  the  common  schools,  and  in  the  sum- 
mer niotith.s  aide<l  in  the  lalxjrs  of  the  field,  but 
when  he  had  attained  to  man's  estate,  he  deter 
mined  to  pur.sue  some  other  iK-cupation  tlum  that 


to  which  he  had  Inren  reare<l.  and.  .v..,...j.,  .,..i,.i. 
he  went  to  New  York  Ciiy,  where  he  obtainetl 
emjiloyment  in  the  water  w. irks.  He  wa.s  after- 
ward eniploye<l  f-"  iv\..».  ii^in  a  similar  i-apac 
ity  in  BriKiklyn 

Mr.  Dingee  ha?.  Itevn  iwiiv  married.  Krc 
leaving  the  State  of  his  nativity,  he  was  joine<l  in 
weilhuk,  in  1844.  with  Miss  Mary  J  Hxnard.  of 
Westchester  Count>  .  Thes  Invame  the  parents 
of  five  children,  but  all  are  now  ilei\asi-<I  with 
the  extx-ption  of  Solomon,  who  makes  his  home 
in  Michigan.  Two  dietl  in  infancy:  Adelaide 
died  at  the  age  of  thirty  years;  ami  George  died 
in  RavenswtHKl,  in  Noveml)er,  1885.  The  moth- 
er of  this  famih  was  called  to  her  final  rest  on  the 
isili  <if  March.  187s,  and  in  Septemlx-r  follow 
ing  Mr.  Dingee  weddetl  Miss  Amanda  Parkin 
son. 

It  was  in  185^  that  Mr.  Dingee  removeil  to 
Illinois.  He  made  his  first  settlement  in  Wil- 
mette,  and  in  1875  he  came  t(»  Ravenswood, 
where  he  has  resided  continuously  since.  He 
has  engaged  in  fanning  and  gardening,  but  for  a 
numlier  of  years  has  made  a  .specialtx  of  prepar- 
ing sauces  and  pickles  for  tlie  market.  He  began 
ojjerations  on  a  small  scale,  but  has  enlarge<l  his 
facilities  to  meet  the  growing  demand,  until  he 
has  now  a  large  factory  and  is  iloing  an  exten- 
sive business,  handling  from  one  hundreil  thou- 
sand to  one  hundre<l  and  twenty-five  thou.sand 
bushels  »)f  cucunilK-rs  j)er  annum.  He  makes  ex- 
tensive shipments  throughout  this  country,  for 
his  pickles  have  gaine<l  a  reputation  for  iK-ing 
among  the  very  finest  on  the  market.  That  Mr. 
Dingee  ]K>sses.ses  excellent  business  abilit\'  is  in- 
dicated b\  his  large  trade  and  his  suix'cssful 
career.  B>-  gotxl  management  and  well-<lirecte<l 
efforts  he  has  won  a  handsome  conn)etence,  and 
he  deser\'es  all  the  i)raise  that  is  i-onveye<l  in  the 
term,  "a  self-made  man." 

Both  Mr  and  Mrs.  Dingee  hold  niemliership 
with  the  MethiKlist  I\pis<.-opal  Church,  and  take 
a  ]>rominent  part  in  its  upltnilding.  He  aidetl 
largely  in  the  erection  of  the  elegant  hou.se  of 
worshi|>,  i.s  a  member  of  the  B<iard  of  Tnisli-e*. 
and  has  held  other  offici.d  p  Mitiot.s  In  |Hilitii'!i. 
he  ia  usually  a  sup|iorter  of  the  Republican  |>art>  , 


430 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


but  is  not  strictly  bound  by  part\-  ties,  holding 
himself  free  to  support  wlioever  he  thinks  best 
qualified  for  the  office.  He  is  a  public-spirited 
man,  who  gives  his  sanction  and  aid  to  every  en- 
terpri.se  for  the  good  of  the  connnunity.  Through- 
out this  vicinity  he  is  held  in  the  highest  regard, 
and  it  is  with  pleasure  that  we  present  to  our 
readers  the  life  record  of  one  who  is  so  promin- 
ent and  well  known  in  the  county. 


■=1. 


"SD 


^-^ 


[=^ 


NENLEV  HALL,  a  retired  farmer,  is  .still  liv 
ing  in  Cook  County,  the  county  of  his 
nativity,  his  home  lieing  in  Des  Plaines. 
He  is  a  retired  farmer,  and  is  one  of  the  prominent 
and  influential  citizens  of  the  community.  He 
was  born  on  the  ist  of  April,  1835,  and  comes  of 
an  old  \'irginian  family.  His  father.  Benjamin 
Hall,  was  born  in  the  Old  Dominion  in  1808,  and 
emigrated  to  Cook  County  in  1832.  He  married 
Miss  Sarah  Baine,  also  a  nati\-e  of  Virginia,  and 
they  became  the  parents  of  six  children,  three 
.sons  and  three  daughters,  as  follows:  F.  B.,  now 
agent  for  the  American  Express  Company  at 
Freeport,  111.:  Henley,  who.se  name  heads  this 
sketch;  X'irginia,  Araminta  Jane  and  Augu.sta,  all 
now  decea.sed:  and  George  Montgonier\-,  who 
holds  the  respon.sible  position  of  A.ssi.stant  Super- 
intendent of  the  Northern  Pacific  Railroad,  and 
resides  in  Portland,  Ore.  The  father  of  this  fam- 
ily was  a  farmer  by  occupation,  and  on  coming  to 
Illinois  he  entered  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  of 
Government  land  at  Northfield,  Cook  Count_\-. 
It  was  in  its  primitive  condition,  not  a  furrow 
having  been  turned  or  an  improvement  made 
upon  it,  but  he  transformed  it  into  a  rich  and  fer- 
tile tract. 

Upon  the  old  homestead  our  subject  was  reared 
to  manhood.  His  education  was  acquired  in  the 
common  schools  of  the  neighborhood,  and  to  his 
father  he  gave  the  benefit  of  his  services  until 
twenty-five  years  of  age.  when  he  .started  out  in 
life  for  himself.  The  pursuit  to  which  he  was 
reared  became  his  life  work.  Locating  upon  a 
farm  in   Maine  Township,  he  there  resided  for  a- 


third  of  a  century,  devoting  his  time  and  attention 
to  the  cultivation  and  improvement  of  his  prop- 
ert\-,  whicli  he  made  a  valuable  and  desirable 
place.  He  was  quite  successful  in  his  undertak- 
ings, and  thereby  accunuilated  a  comfortable 
competence. 

In  1862,  Mr.  Hall  was  united  in  marriage  with 
Miss  Jane  Marshall,  and  unto  them  have  been 
born  nine  cliildrcn,  fi\-e  sons  and  four  daughters. 
One  son,  William,  resides  in  Des  Plaines,  but  is 
employed  in  the  Merchants'  Loan  Bank  of  Chi- 
cago; Edward  B.  is  decea.sed:  and  Arthur  is 
living  in  the  State  of  Washington. 

In  his  political  affiliations,  Mr.  Hall  is  a  Re- 
publican, having  been  a  warm  su])porter  of  that 
part\-  and  its  princij)les  since  casting  his  first 
Presidential  vote  for  Abraham  Lincoln.  In  1869 
he  was  elected  to  the  office  of  Collector  of  Maine 
Township,  and  .ser\-ed  until  1872.  In  1878,  he 
was  again  chosen  to  the  same  position,  and  .served 
for  another  three  years.  He  has  also  filled  the 
office  of  Constable  of  Maine  Town.ship,  has  served 
as  Trustee  of  the  schools  for  a  number  of  years, 
and  is  now  filling  that  position.  He  has  proved 
a  faithful  officer  in  these  various  capacities,  being 
ever  true  to  the  trust  reposed  in  him.  In  1892,  Mr. 
Hall  left  his  farm  and  removed  to  Des  Plaines, 
where  he  is  now  living  retired.  His  rest  is  well 
earned,  and  is  a  fitting  crown  to  the  years  of 
faithful  toil  that  preceded  it. 


e^H>H^p=— 


F 


-9 


RANK  H.  GOIN,  who  is  numbered  among 
the  successful  lawyers  of  Chicago  and  among 
the  leading  residents  of  Evanston,  is  a  na- 
tive of  Littleton,  N.  H.,  born  July  23,  1S49.  His 
parents  were  Eri  and  Amanda  B.  (Davenport) 
Goin,  the  former  a  native  of  X'erniont.  and  the 
latter  of  New  Hampshire.  The  father  engaged 
in  merchandising  in  Littleton  for  many  years,  but 
during  the  latter  part  of  his  life  he  lived  retired 
upon  a  farm  in  the  Green  Mountain  vState.  His 
death  occurred  in  October.  1S87.  at  the  advanced 
age  of  eight\  -four  years,  and  his  wife  passed  away 
in  1877,  at  the  age  of  fiftv-four.      He  held  mem- 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


43' 


bership  with  the  I'niversalist  Church,  and  she  be- 
longed to  the  Congregational  Church.  The  pa- 
ternal grandfather.  Joseph  Goin.  was  a  native  of 
\'emiont.  and  also  followed  farnnng.  The  ma- 
ternal grandfather.  Lot  Davenport,  was  boni  in 
the  old  Granite  State,  and  both  families  lived  in 
New  England  for  many  generations.  The  earli- 
est American  ancestor  of  our  subject  emigrated  to 
this  countr\-  from  Loudon  in  1637.  He  was  a 
noted  Nonconformist  preacher,  and  on  account  of 
his  religious  views  left  his  native  land,  taking  up 
his  residence  in  Boston.  The  following  year. 
163S.  he  founded  New  Haven.  The  first  Sunday 
after  his  arrival  there  he  preached  under  a  tree. 
He  became  the  ruler  of  the  Colony,  which  adopted 
the  Bible  as  its  standard  of  government.  Later 
he  was  invited  to  return  to  England  and  sit  in  the 
A.ssembly  of  Westmin.ster  Divines.  He  was  a 
ver\'  learned  and  celebrated  man.  and  bore  a 
prominent  part  in  shaping  the  course  and  charac- 
ter of  the  Connecticut  Colony. 

Frank  H.  Goin  whose  name  heads  this  record 
spent  the  first  .seven  years  of  his  life  in  his  native 
town  and  was  then  reared  up)on  his  father's  farm 
in  \'ermont.  After  attending  the  common  schools, 
he  Ijecame  a  student  in  the  State  Normal  of  Ver- 
mont, and  subsequently  completed  the  classical 
course  at  Kimball  I'nion  Academy,  from  which 
institution  he  was  graduated  in  187 1.  He  after- 
ward studied  law  in  the  office  of  the  late  Chief 
Justice  Cushing,  of  Charleston,  N.  H.,  and  was 
admitted  to  the  Bar  in  1S74.  He  then  took  a 
course  in  the  Albany  i  N.  Y. )  Law  School,  a  de- 
partment of  Union  University,  and  received  from 
that  institution  the  degree  of  LL.  D.  in  1S76. 
In  June  of  the  .same  year  he  entered  upon  the 
practice  of  his  cho.sen  professioti  in  Burlington, 
Vt. .  as  a  partner  of  Alexander  Wat.son .  an  old 
established  attorney  of  that  cit\ ,  under  the  firm 
name  of  Watson  &  Goin.  This  connection  was 
continued  until  1S77.  when  he  formetl  a  partner- 
-ship  with  Wilbur  F.  Powers,  now  a  legal  practi- 
tioner of  Boston,  under  the  business  style  of  Goin 
&  Powers. 

On  the  30th  of  January.  1874,  was  celebrated 
the  marriage  of  Mr.  Goin  and  Miss  Ida  F.  Wood- 
bury,  a  daughter  of  Judge  A.  M.  Woodburj-.  of 


Elmore,  \'t.  She  came  from  the  family  of  Levi 
Woodbur>'.  of  New  Hamp.shire.  who  was  Gov- 
ernor of  the  Granite  State,  United  States  Senator, 
and  later  Judge  of  the  United  States  Supreme 
Court.  Four  children  have  been  born  unto  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Goin,  all  .sons.  Horatio  Davenport, 
the  youngest,  died  in  infancy:  Clifton  Woodbury, 
Roljert  Edgar  and  Frank  Henrv-  are  all  now  jire- 
paring  for  college. 

In  1880  Mr.  Goin  came  to  Chicago,  and  has 
practicetl  law  here  continuou.sly  .since.  In  politics, 
he  is  a  Democrat,  of  Republican  antecedents,  and 
in  1872  he  was  electe;!  to  the  New  Hampshire 
Legislature  fromPlainfield  by  both  Regiiblican  and 
Democratic  votes.  In  1877  he  was  elected  Pros- 
ecuting Officer  of  Burlington.  In  April.  1892,  he 
removed  to  Evanston,  where  he  has  a  beautiful 
home  on  Lincoln  Street,  with  a  frontage  of  three 
hundred  and  sixty-five  feet.  Mrs.  Goin  is  a 
member  of  the  Episcopal  Church.  The  abilities 
of  our  .subject,  both  natural  and  acquired,  com- 
bined with  earne.st  effort,  have  placed  him  in  the 
front  rank  among  legal  practitioners  and  gained 
for  him  a  large  business. 


^-^ 


cs_ 


Q  A.  BURLINGAME.  one  of  the  sul)stantial 
I  and  enterprising  business  men  of  Palatine. 
(2/  claims  Connecticut  as  the  State  of  his  nativ- 
ity. He  was  born  on  the  29th  of  November, 
1856.  in  Danielsonville.  Windham  County,  and 
comes  of  an  old  New  England  family,  which  was 
founded  in  America  during  early  Colonial  days  by 
English  ancestors  who  settled  in  Rhode  Island. 
The  grandfather.  Capt.  Abraham  Burlingame, 
who  was  a  native  of  that  State,  served  in  the  War  of 
1.S12,  and  there  won  his  title.  His  wife  reached 
the  remarkable  age  of  one  hundred  years  and  two 
months.  pas.sing  away  in  July.  1893. 

Ezekiel  R.  Burlingame.  father  of  our  subject, 
was  born  in  Windham  County,  Conn.,  in  1828, 
and  when  he  had  arrived  at  mature  years  he  there 
married  Miss  Sarah  A.  Burgess,  who  was  a  r.a- 
tive  of  Fort.  R.  I.,  and  a  descendant  of  Roger 
Williams.     Mr.  Burlingame  engaged  in  merchan- 


432 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


dising  and  carried  on  a  ver\-  extensive  business  in 
Danielsonville.  He  was  a  man  of  superior  busi- 
ness and  executive  ability,  and  was  recognized  as 
one  of  the  successful  and  prominent  citizens  of 
Windham  County,  where  he  reared  his  famil.\- 
and  spent  his  entire  life.  He  was  elected  and 
held  numerous  official  positions  of  honor  and  trust, 
and  for  over  twenty  years  .served  as  Selectman  of 
his  town.  In  all  public  offices  he  was  found  faith- 
ful and  true.  His  death  occurred  in  March,  1888, 
and  was  deeply  mourned  by  a  large  circle  of 
friends  and  acquaintances,  who  held  him  in  the 
highest  regard.  His  wife  still  survives  him,  and 
is  yet  living  at  the  old  home  in  Daniel.sonville. 
Our  subject  was  the  second  in  order  of  birth  in 
their  family  of  two  sons  and  two  daughters. 
Olney,  the  eldest,  is  now  engaged  in  l)usiness  in 
Chicago;  Esther  A.  is  the  wife  of  W.  O.  Jacobs, 
who  was  formerly  a  prominent  merchant  of  Dan- 
iel.sonville, but  is  now  deceased:  and  Sarah  is  liv- 
ing with  her  mother.  The  latter  is  a  young  lady 
of  superior  education,  who  has  received  exten.sive 
training  in  music  and  is  now  a  teacher  of  that 
art. 

J.  A.  Hurliugame  was  reared  under  the  parental 
roof  and  acquired  his  education  in  the  High  School 
of  his  native  city,  and  in  Ea.stman's  Business  Col- 
lege, of  Poughkeepsie,  N.  V.  After  completing 
his  .studies,  he  returned  to  his  home  and  assisted 
his  father  in  bu.siness  for  a  number  of  years,  but 
at  length  he  determined  to  go  to  the  West,  and  in 
1872  arrived  in  Illinois.  Six  years  later  he  lo- 
cated in  Palatine  Township,  Cook  Count>-,  and, 
purchasing  a  farm,  engaged  in  raising,  buying  and 
dealing  in  horses.  He  handles  fine  driving  stock, 
and  is  doing  an  extensive  and  succes.sful  business 
in  this  line.  He  also  keeps  a  boarding-stable  for 
Chicago  horses,  and  has  recently  completed  a  fine 
barn  in  the  northern  part  of  Palatine.  Tosomee.x- 
tent,  Mr.  Burlinganie  deals  in  real  estate.  Be- 
sides the  farm  before  mentioned,  he  owns  another 
finely  improved  farm  about  two  miles  from  Pala- 
tine, together  with  one  adjoining  the  coi-poration 
limits  of  the  town,  a  neat  and  substantial  resi- 
dence in  Palatine,  and  his  own  elegant  home. 

Mr.  Burlinganie  was  married  in  Chicago,  in 
1879,  to  Mrs.  Lsabella  Lane,  who  was  born,  reared 


and  educated  in  Boston,  Mass.,  and  came  to  the 
metropolis  of  the  West  in  1S71.  They  have  two 
daughters,  Miiniie  J.  and  Mattie  E.  The  home, 
hand.someh-  and  ta.stefully  furnished,  is  the  abode 
of  hospitality,  and  mother  and  daughters  are 
charming  ho.stcs.ses. 

In  politics,  Mr.  Burlinganie  is  a  stanch  Demo- 
crat, and  is  a  most  earnest  worker  in  the  ititerests 
of  his  part\-,  the  princijiles  of  which  he  warmly 
advocates.  He  has  never  .sought  preferment  for 
himself  but  he  delights  in  the  work  and  excite- 
ment of  a  political  contest.  For  several  years  he 
has  been  a  member  of  the  Cook  County  Demo- 
cratic Central  Committee,  and  for  three  years  was 
its  Vice-President.  Socially,  he  is  a  Knight  Tem- 
plar Mason,  and  is  Pa.st  Master  of  the  Blue 
Lodge  of  Palatine.  The  prominent  jiart  which 
he  takes  in  politics,  and  his  exten.sive  business  in- 
terests, have  made  him  widely  known,  and  he  is 
numbered  among  the  progressive  citizens  of  Cook 
Countv. 


-=^^^^1 


""MH.  BUETTNER  is  a  member  of  the  firm 
V)  "f  Ernst  Weinhoeber  &  Co.,  flori.sts,  doing 
__  business  at  Nos.  417  to  425  Elm  Street, 
Chicago,  with  greenhon.ses  at  Park  Ridge.  In 
the  latter  place  he  makes  his  home.  He  was  born 
in  Prussia,  Oermany,  on  the  14th  of  December, 
1856,  and  is  the  son  of  Dr.  E.  Buettner,  who 
came  to  America  in  1S71. 

Our  subject  acquired  his  education  in  Germany, 
where  he  was  reared  to  manhood.  It  was  in- 
tended that  he  should  study  medicine,  l)ut  he 
gave  up  that  plan  in  order  to  emigrate  to  the 
New  World.  Hoping  to  better  his  financial  con- 
dition by  a  removal  to  the  United  States,  he 
cro.ssed  the  briny  deep  at  the  age  of  fifteen  years, 
and,  landing  in  New  York  City,  engaged  in  the 
florist's  business  in  connection  with  his  brother-in- 
law,  with  whom  he  continued  for  ten  years.  On 
the  expiration  of  that  period  he  came  to  the  West, 
locating  in  Chicago,  where  he  secured  employment 
in  the  line  of  his  trade  with  Ern.st  Weinhoeber.  In 
1887    the    greenhouses    were    removed    to    Park 


Charles  Carpenter. 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


435 


Ridge,  and  Mr.  Buettner  purchased  an  interest  in 
the  business,  which  has  since  been  conducted  un- 
der the  finn  name  of  Ernst  W'einhoeber  &  Co. 
Here  they  occupy  ten  acres  of  ground,  and  are 
engaged  chiefly  in  the  propagation  of  cut  flowers, 
which  they  sell  to  the  retail  trade  in  their  store 
at  Nos.  417  to  425  Elm  Street,  Chicago.  Their 
bu.'^iness  now  aggregates  about  $60,000  per  an- 
num, and  is  constantly  increasing.  Employment 
is  furnished  to  about  twenty -five  hands. 

On  the  17th  of  May.  1S92.  Mr.  Buettner  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Bertha  Hildebrant. 
a  daughter  of  Louis  Hildebrant.  who  resides 
in  Milwaukee.  Our  subject  is  a  member  of  the 
American  Florists'  Society,  and  also  belongs  to  the 
Chicago  Floral  Club.  lu  political  .sentiment,  he 
is  a  supfKjrter  of  the  Republican  part\-  and  its 
principles,  but  has  never  l>een  an  aspirant  for 
public  office.  In  apjiearance,  Mr.  Buettner  is  a 
man  of  splendid  physique  and  fine  proportions. 
In  business,  he  is  progressive,  wide-awake  and 
thorough -going.  His  tact  is  pronounced,  and 
the  success  which  crowns  the  efforts  of  the  firm 
is  largely  due  to  his  instrumentality.  His  wife 
is  a  lady  of  culture  and  refinement,  and  the  happy 
couple  have  a  large  circle  of  warm  friends. 


-^^^-^1-= 


_9 


E 


HARLES  CARPENTER,  son  of  William 
and  Man,-  (Hollister)  Carpenter, was  born  in 
the  town  of  DeWitt.  Onondaga  County, 
N.  v.,  September  23.  1S33.  William  Carpenter 
was  bom  May  i.  1806.  He  was  the  "son  of  Ne- 
hemiah  and  Anna  ( Bookout )  Carpenter,  who 
were  married  Februar\-  13,  1782. 

Nehemiah  Carpenter,  who  was  bom  June  29, 
1757.  was  a  weaver.  At  the  outbreak  of  the  Rev- 
olutionan,-  War  he  was  living  on  Long  Island, 
near  New  York  City.  When  Washington's  army 
went  from  Boston  to  New  York  to  protect  the 
latter  place  from  attack  by  the  British.  Nehemiah 
Carpenter,  then  a  lad  of  nineteen,  enlisted,  and 
fought  under  Gen.  Israel  Putnam  for  American 
independence  at  the  battle  of  Long  Island,  August 
27.  1776.     There  is  no  known  record  of  his  later 


services  as  a  soldier.  He  died  February-  24.1832, 
at  Manlius,  N.  Y.  His  wife,  Anna  Bookout.  was 
from  a  Dutch  New  York  family, 

Nehemiah  Carpenter's  father  was  also  named 
Nehemiah.  He  was  bom  in  1731,  and  died  April 
25.  182 1,  He  was  also  a  soldier  in  the  American 
Revolution,  and  was  Quartermaster  of  the  "  Or- 
ange County  Minutemen."  which  company  was 
commissioned  Jaimary  5.  1776.  The  following 
entries  from  '  Archives  of  the  State  of  New  York, 
The  Revolution."  pp.  197  and  233,  give  what 
is  known  of  his  ser\-ices: 

"Carpenter,  Nehemiah.  Ensign.  App'd  June 
29,  '81,  to  date  from  June  5.  '79.  when  fnustered 
as  Ensign  5th  N.  Y.,  late  Qr.  Mr.  5th  N.  Y.,  re- 
turned from  captivity." 

"Carpenter.  Nehemiah.  Ensign  in  5th  N.  Y.. 
as  Qr.  Mr.  Nov.  21,  '76.  omitted  July,  "So.  June 
25.  '79,  must'd  to  Jan.,  '82." 

His  father  was  also  Nehemiah.  and  was  a 
blacksmith.  He  was  bom  probably  about  1700, 
and  died  in  1783,  in  Orange  County,  N.  Y.  His 
father  was  John  Carpenter,  Jr.,  known  as  "Young 
Capt,  John,"  He  was  bom  at  Jamaica,  N.  Y.. 
about  1654,  and  died  about  1735. 

Young  Capt.  John's  father  was  John  Carp)eu- 
ter.  known  as  "Old  Capt.  John.  '  who  was  bom 
in  England  in  1627.  and  died  in  1695.  He  came 
to  America  with  his  father.  William  Carpenter. 
This  William  Carpenter  was  bom  in  England  in 
1605,  and  came  over  from  Wherewell.  Wiltshire, 
England,  in  the  ship  "Bevis,  "  in  1638.  He 
landed  at  Rehoboth,  Mass.  He  was  a  carpenter 
by  trade.  Besides  his  children,  he  brought  with 
him  to  America  his  aged  father,  also  named  Will- 
iam. 

The  children  of  Nehemiah  and  Anna  Carpen- 
ter were:  Nehemiah.  born  August  13,  1798.  who 
died  May  24,  1825;  \'liet.  born  July  2.  1801,  who 
died  about  1884;  Nancy,  born  January  18.  1804. 
who  died  January  4,  18 15:  and  William,  bom 
May  I,  1806,  who  died  May  7.  1875. 

William  Carpenter  and  Mary  Hollister  were 
married  Januar>-  19,  1832.  Their  children  were: 
Charles,  born  September  23.  1833;  Hubert,  born 
February  8,  1837,  and  who  died  May  6,  1864: 
and  Abiah,  bom  September  22.  1838. 

William  Carpenter,  the  father  of  the  subject  of 


22 


436 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


our  sketch,  was  a  successfal  farmer.  He  wa.s 
known  as  a  man  who  had  the  courage  of  his  con- 
victions. For  many  years  he  was  a  member  of 
the  Presbyterian  Church.  Early  in  the  agitation 
against  slavery,  Mr.  Carpenter  became  an  Aboli- 
tionist. This  doctrine  at  that  time  was  an  un- 
popular one.  He  attempted  to  work  a  reforma- 
tion in  his  own  church  in  its  attitude  toward 
slavery.  The  members  did  not  yield  easih',  and 
he  finally  called  them  sharply  to  account  for  what 
he  considered  to  be  an  inconsistency  between  their 
doctrine  and  their  performances.  The  result  was 
that  he  was  expelled  from  the  church. 

Man-  Hollister.  his  wife,  was  born  January-  2, 
iXoi.  and  died  March  28,  1846.  She  was  a  de- 
scendant of  Lieut.  John  Hollister,  of  Wethersfield, 
Conn.,  who  came  to  America  from  England  about 
1642.  He  was  of  good  family  and  well  educated, 
and  inunediately  became  one  of  the  most  noted 
and  influential  men  of  Wethersfield  and  of  Con- 
necticut Colony,  and  held  both  civil  and  military 
positions  of  importance  for  many  years.  He  died 
in  April,  1665.  His  second  residence,  an  unusu- 
allv  fine  one  for  the  times,  still  stands  on  the  land 
he  owned.  His  wife.  Joanna,  was  a  daughter  of 
Hon.  Richard  Treat,  Sr.,  one  of  the  first  settlers 
and  most  prominent  men  of  Connecticut  Colony. 
Robert  Treat,  her  brother,  was  a  famous  Indian 
fighter  and  for  many  years  was  Governor  of  Con- 
necticut. He  it  was  who  engineered  the  hiding 
of  the  charter  in  the  oak  tree  when  Sir  Edmund 
Andros  came  after  it. 

The  succession  descends  through  John  Holli.ster, 
Jr.  (born  in  1644,  died  in  1711  ),wlio  married  Sarah 
Goodrich,  who  came  from  one  of  the  first  families 
of  Connecticut:  thence  through  Joseph  Hollister 
(born  July  8,  1674.  died  July  9,  1746):  thence 
through  Capt.  Timothy  Hollister,  who  was  En- 
sign in  1742,  and  Captain  in  1750,  of  the  Twelfth 
Company  of  the  Sixth  Regiment  of  the  Colony, 
and  who,  with  his  eldest  son,  Joseph,  was  killed 
by  the  Indians  at  Wyoming  Flats,  Pa. ,  October 
15,  1763;  and  thence  through  Asa  Hollister 
(bom  December  9,  1758,  died  April  16,  1839), 
who  moved  to  America,  Dutchess  County,  N.  Y., 
in  1 78 1,  where  he  died. 

William  Carpenter  moved  to  Dry  den,  Tompkins 


County,  N.  Y. ,  when  Charles  was  a  child,  and 
there  the  latter  grew  up.  He  had  about  the  us- 
ual experiences  of  farmer  bo\s,  with  hard  work 
during  the  summer  and  .some  schooling  during  the 
winter.  As  soon  as  old  enough  he  began  teach- 
ing school.  In  February.  1857.  he  went  to  Chi- 
cago, where  he  obtained  employment  for  a  time. 
But  the  financial  crash  of  that  year  came  and  he 
was  out.  He  worked  as  a  book-keeper  during 
the  winter  of  1857  ^"d  '858,  and  at  anything  he 
could  get  during  the  following  sunnner.  In  the 
fall  of  the  latter  year  he  came  to  Downer's  Grove 
and  taught  school  here  during  the  winter  of  1858 
and  1859.  Not  finding  satisfactory  employment, 
he  went  to  Missouri  in  the  fall  of  1859  and  taught 
.school  for  nearly  a  year,  but  as  the  political  cam- 
paign then  became  too  hot  for  a  Northern  man,  he 
came  back  to  Downer's  Grove  in  the  fall  of  i860, 
and  taught  again  during  the  winter  of  i860  and 
1861. 

When  Sumter  was  fired  upon,  Mr.  Carpenter 
enlisted,  in  April,  1861,  and  was  nuLstered  into 
the  service  May  24,  1861,  for  three  years,  in  Capt. 
Walter  Blanchard's  company  (K)  of  the  Thir- 
teenth Illinois  Infantry,  at  Dixon.  111.  He 
shared  the  usual  vicissitudes  of  the  soldier  in  the 
ranks.  The  regiment  moved  from  Dixon  to 
Casey ville,  111.,  and  thence  to  Rolla,  Mo.  Here  it 
stayed  several  months  guarding  the  town  and  the 
railroad.  That  this  monotonous,  trying  service 
was  not  unimportant  or  unappreciated,  is  shown 
by  what  Gen.  Lyon  said,  as  follows: 

"As  this  line  (Southwest  Branch  of  the  Pacific 
Railroad  )  has  become  the  most  important  in  the 
whole  State,  and  as  it  is  threatened  by  hostile 
bands  under  Gen.  McBride  and  others,  it  has  been 
deemed  best  to  place  it  under  the  command  of 
Col.  Wyman.  Thirteenth  Illinois  \'olunteers." 

The  regiment's  reputation  is  shown  b\-  what 
Adjt.-Gen.  Harding  said  to  Gen.  Lyon:  "Wy- 
man's  is  a  splendid  regiment,  and  I  am  trying  to 
get  other  troops  to  supply  his  place  and  .send  him 
forward."  But  the  Thirteenth  was  glad  when  fi- 
nalh'  the  order  to  mo\-e  came. 

The  march  of  Gen.  Curtis'  army  from  Rolla, 
Mo.,  to  Helena.  Ark.,  in  which  the  Thirteenth 
took  part,  was  remarkable  in  man\'  respects,  and 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL    RECORD. 


437 


as  a  test  of  soldierly  qualities  and  endurance  was 
much  more  severe  than  Shennan"s  march  to  the 
sea.  The  distance  actually  covered  was  twelve 
hundred  miles.  At  one  time  the  army  was  not 
heard  from  for  five  weeks.  The  countr\-  was 
rough  and  poor,  hardh-  affording  subsistence  for 
its  own  scattering  population .  Often  the  supply 
trains  were  stuck  in  the  nuul  miles  behind  the  main 
armv.  and  thus  the  rations  were  short.  For  in- 
.stance,  a  diary  said:  "  To-day  we  had  but  a  small 
piece  of  corn  bread  to  the  man.  and  nothing  to 
cook  for  .supper.'"  The  following  quotation  from 
the  same  diar>-  gives  an  inkling  of  what  the  sol- 
diers suffered: 

■■  Left  camp  at  2  .\.  m.  and  made  one  of  the 
longest,  hardest  marches  e\er  known.  The  sun 
was  scorching  and  the  dust  blinding.  There  were 
few  wells  on  the  route,  and  we  were  parched  with 
thirst.  One  and  even  two  dollars  were  offered  for 
a  canteen  of  water,  but  mone>-  was  no  object. 
Men  would  sta>-  for  hours  at  a  well,  till  all  the 
troops  had  passed,  before  they  could  fill  their  can- 
teens. For  thirty-two  miles  we  toiled  on,  and 
then  found  a  small,  filthy  lake  in  a  cypre.ss  swamp, 
near  which  we  pitched  our  tents.  We  were  ready 
to  rest  here,  and  most  of  us,  too  tired  to  eat,  threw 
ourselves  on  the  ground,  and  only  arose  at  tririllc 
the  next  moniing." 

But  finally  Helena  was  reached.  Here  the  reg- 
iment did  garrison  duty  for  several  months,  the 
onlv  changes  being  skirmishes  with  the  enemy 
and  scouting  and  foraging  expeditions. 

On  December  20.  1862,  they  left  Helena  to  go 
down  the  Mis.sissippi  River  to  form  a  part  of  Gen. 
Shenuan's  army  that  was  to  attack  Vick.sburg. 
December  28  and  29  they  were  in  the  thick  of  the 
battle  of  Chicka.saw  Bayou.  The  fighting  on  the 
28th  was  not  decisive.  Late  in  the  afternoon  of 
that  day  Gen.  F.  P.  Blair  ordered  the  Thirteenth 
to  cross  the  bayou,  saying,  "I'll  see  if  you  can  stand 
mud  and  water  as  well  as  you  can  stand  fire. ' '  The 
cro.ssing  was  made,  but  darkness  came  on  and 
.stopped  further  forward  movement,  and  the  regi- 
ment withdrew.  Early  on  the  day  of  the  29th  the 
Thirteenth  formed  a  portion  of  the  body  of  troops 
that  made  one  of  the  bravest  charges  of  the  war, 
— across  the  bayou  and  up  the  heights  guarded 
by  the  rebels.  They  captured  the  first  set  of 
rebel  intrenchments  and  would  have  carried  the 


re.st.  if  the  attack  from  the  rear  by  other  forces, 
which  was  a  part  of  the  scheme,  had  not  failed. 
In  this  charge  Mr.  Carpenter  was  captured.  The 
circumstances  of  the  capture  are  told  by  Chaplain 
Needham,  of  the  Thirteenth,  on  page  634  of  the 
history  of  that  regiment,  as  follows: 

"  I  record  it  with  pride  that  those  of  us  who 
were  captured  at  Chickasaw  Bayou  fell  into  the 
enemy's  hands  because,  obeying  tlie  first  order  to 
"Charge,"  and  not  hearing  the  counter-order, 
"  Retreat,"  we  pres.sed  forward  through  the  dense 
smoke  of  the  enemy's  artillery  till  beyond  the 
reach  of  support.  Surrounded  by  the  enenn-.  the 
few  of  us  who  were  left  alive  had  no  alternative 
but  to  surrender  singly  or  in  small  squads  to  a 
triumphant  enemy  before  and  behind." 

The  prisoners  were  taken  into  \'^icksburg,  where 
they  remained  until  Januan-  31.  Thence  they 
went  to  Jackson,  Miss.,  where  they  stayed  until 
March  13,  when  they  were  turned  over  to  Gen. 
Banks,  then  commanding  at  New  Orleans.  In 
these  rebel  prisons  the>-  suffered  the  usual  treat- 
ment accorded  to  I'nion  prisoners.  They  were 
robbed  of  all  they  had,  star\-ed,  frozen  and  neg- 
lected. 

Mr.  Carpenter  had  been  wounded  in  the  hand, 
and  was,  one  of  his  comrades  says,  a  thoroughly 
lugubrious  looking  man  as  he  stood  in  the  rebel 
enclosure,  tr\'ing  to  attend  to  his  bleeding  mem- 
ber and  reflecting  on  the  prospect  before  him. 
But  that  he  was  still  really  full  of  fight  is  .shown 
by  the  following  occurrence:  Said  a  rebel  officer 
to  him:  "  Have  you  not  got  enough  of  this?" 
The  instant  answer  was:  "We  expect  to  come 
back  and  try  it  over  again  as  soon  as  we  can." 
This  was  not  what  the  rebel  expected,  and  he 
could  only  express  his  disgust  by  saying:  "  Vou 
are  a  d fool." 

The  vuicompromi.sing  loyalt\-  of  the  men  of  the 
Thirteenth  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  some  of  the 
weak-kneed  I'nion  prisoners  tried  to  organize  a 
movement  to  take  some  sort  of  an  oath  and  get 
released,  but  that  they  did  not  dare  even  to  ask 
the  Thirteenth  people  if  they  wanted  to  come  in. 
The>-  knew  what  their  answer  would  be.  The 
latter  part  of  April  they  were  put  on  board  ship 
and  sent  to  New  York.  Thence  they  went  to 
Annapolis,  Md.,  and  to  St.  Louis,  Mo.,  where  the 


438 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


camp  for  paroled  prisoners  was  situated.  Mr. 
Carpenter,  not  liking  the  prospect  of  lying  in  a 
camp  indefinitely  as  a  paroled  prisoner,  came  to 
Downers  Grove,  where  he  arrived  May  24,  1863, 
just  two  >ears  from  the  date  of  his  nuister  into 
sers'ice. 

On  May  27,  1863.  Mr.  Carpenter  was  married 
to  Mar>-  Blanchard.  they  having  been  engaged 
for  some  time  before  the  breaking  out  of  the  war. 
He  was  shortly  afterward  assigned  to  duty  as  Re- 
porter to  the  militar\-  courts  then  in  session  in 
St.  Louis.  This  .service  was  valuable,  civilians 
being  paid  §70  per  week  for  it.  Mr.  Carpenter 
as  a  private  soldier  received  513  per  month,  and 
was  kept  at  St.  Louis  in  that  work  until  the  reg- 
iment was  mustered  out,  June  iS,   1864. 

For  several  months  thereafter  our  subject  re- 
ported for  the  militar>-  courts  in  St.  Louis,  on 
orders  from  the  War  Department.  The  winter  of 
1 865-1 866  he  reported  the  Kentucky  Legislature 
at  Frankfort  for  the  Louisville  Journal.  Later 
he  came  North,  taught  school  for  .several  years, 
and  finally  went  back  to  reporting.  He  has  lived 
in  Downer's  Grove  continuou.sly  since  1 868.  and 
is  .still  a  court  reporter  in  Chicago. 

Not  having  been  a  politician,  unless  having  al- 
ways voted  Republican  tickets  makes  our  subject 
one,  he  has  never  held  public  office  except  as 
\'illage  Clerk,  member  of  the  Village  Board,  and 
for  a  number  of  \ears  School  Director  and  mem- 
ber of  the  Board  of  Education. 

Charles  Carjjenter  and  Marj-  (Blanchard)  Car- 
penter had  the  following  children:  Walter  Hu- 
bert, born  February  10,  1865:  William  Mon- 
telle,  bom  October  15,  1866:  Charles  Vliet,  born 
September  9,  1868:  Carrie  Mariam,  born  March 
10,  1872,  who  died  December  5,  1879;  and  Nehe- 
miah,  born  August  26.  1876,  who  died  August 
30,  1877.  These  children  are  proud  of  being  de- 
scendants of  or  closely  connected  with  many  men 
who  considered  it  to  be  their  duty  to  support  the 
Goverimient  with  arms  on  numerous  occasions. 
Their  father  was  a  soldier  in  the  Rebellion,  their 
mother's  father  was  a  soldier  in  the  Rebellion,  as 
were  her  two  brothers  and  eight  of  her  uncles  and 
cousins  on  her  mother's  side.  Their  father's 
brother,.  Hubert  Carpenter,  was  First  Lieutenant 


of  Company  E.  Sevents--sixth  New  York  In- 
fantry-, and  Adjutant  of  the  regiment.  Their 
maternal  great-grandfather  was  a  soldier  in  the 
War  of  181 2.  and  three  of  his  older  brothers  were 
minutemen  and  fought  at  Lexington,  the  first 
battle  of  the  Revolution.  Their  paternal  great- 
grandfather was  a  soldier  under  Washington  and 
Putnam  in  the  Revolution,  and  their  great-great- 
grandfather was  Ensign  and  Quartenna.ster  in 
the  Revolution. 

Walter  H.  Carpenter  has  taught  school  for  a 
number  of  years,  in  Illinois  and  Missouri.  He  is 
unmarried,  and  is  still  teaching  school. 

William  M.  has  a  responsible  position  in  the  fi- 
nancial department  of  a  large  corporation  in  Chi- 
cago. He  married  Florrie  M.  Schofield,  of 
Downer's  Grove,  July  7,  1888.  They  had  two 
children:  Hubert  Montelle,  born  June  16,  1889; 
and  Ella  Blanchard,  toni  December  19,  1890. 
Mrs.  Carpenter  died  November  10,  1893. 
obitiwrv. 

November  17,  1893. 
Died  at  her  pleasant  home  in  our  village,  F'lor- 
rie,  wife  of  W.  M.  Carpenter  and  daughter  of 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  L.  G.  Schofield,  in  the  twenty-sev- 
enth year  of  her  age.  Mrs.  Caqjenter  had  been 
suffering  for  some  time  from  a  difliculty  that  had 
affected  her  nervous  .system.  It  was  hojjed  that 
it  would  yield  to  treatment,  but  she  had  an  attack 
of  acute  meningitis  that  caused  her  death  last 
F'riday,  November  10.  Funeral  ser\-ices  were 
held  at  the  hou.se  last  Sunday  afternoon,  con- 
ducted hy  Rev.  J.  C.  Myers.  Beautiful  in  life,  she 
was  also  .so  in  death.  The  flowers  that  bedecked  her 
coffin  were  fit  emblems  of  her  purity.  After  five 
years  of  happy  married  life,  she  left  a  home  deso- 
late, with  a  devoted  husband  and  two  children  to 
mo'.;rn  her  loss. — Downer's  Grove  Kcportcr. 

C.  Vliet  is  Private  Secretan.-  to  the  General 
Manager  of  the  Chicago.  Burlington  &  Quincy 
Railroad.  He  married  Gu.ssie  A.  Seidler,  Octo- 
ber 29,  1890.  They  have  one  child,  Brian  Vliet 
Montelle,  who  was  bom  September  8,  1891. 

Mar\-  (Blanchard  )  Carpenter  died  April  i,  1893. 
The  following   may    be   appropriately  quoted  in 

this  connection: 

April  7.  1893. 

A  little  more  than  two  weeks  ago  Mary  *  Blanch- 
ard )  Carpenter  left  here  to  visit  her  sister,  Mrs. 
DeArmond,  at  Fairfax,  Mo.    Mrs.  Carpenter  had 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL    RECORD. 


439 


been  an  invalid  for  some  time,  but  all  expected  to 
see  her  hack  again  improved.  The  change  .seemed 
to  do  her  good.  Friday  noon  .she  wrote  to  those 
at  home  that,  "  on  the  whole, " '  she  was  better. 
But  the  same  afternoon,  while  letters  from  her 
children  were  being  read  to  her,  she  was  suddenly 
attacked  by  a  stuiwr.  from  which  she  did  not 
rally.  Death  came  at  8.40  p.  m.,  Saturday,  April 
I.  One  son  was  at  the  l)edside  at  Fairfax,  and 
the  husband  and  two  other  sons  were  hurr\  ing  to 
her  as  fast  as  steam  could  earn,-  them. 

Mrs.  Carpenter  had  often  said  that  she  wished 
to  die  without  warning  or  long  suffering,  and  her 
wish  was  granted.  One  of  her  sons  had  been 
awa\-  from  home  for  some  months,  and  she  had 
been  pining  to  see  him.  But  a  few  days  before 
her  death  they  had  spent  some  time  together. 
Although  awa\-  from  home,  she  was  with  others 
who  loved  her,  and  was  happy  and  contented. 
The  summons  came  unexpectedly,  and  amidst  her 
happiness  and  content,  and  while  she  was  listen- 
ing to  messages  from  her  dear  ones,  she  passed 
from  the  life  here  to  the  life  everlasting  without 
warning  or  suffering. 

Mrs.  Carpenter  was  an  old  settler  here.  The 
daughter  of  Capt.  Walter  Blanchard.  who  was  so 
well  and  honorably  known  here  before  and  dur- 
ing the  war,  she  was  born  on  the  20th  of  May, 
1836,  at  Yates,  Orleans  Counts-,  N.  Y.  Her 
mother  was  Mariam  ( Daniels )  Blanchard.  She 
came  to  Downer's  Grove  in  1S38,  and  has  lived 
here  ever  since,  amidst  her  family  and  relatives, 
except  for  the  time  she  spent  East  at  .school  and 
South  during  and  after  the  war. 

May  27,  1863,  she  was  married  to  Charles  Car- 
penter at  Downer" s  Grove.  Living  only  for  her 
husband  and  children,  she  was  all  that  a  wife  and 
mother  should  be — and  what  more  than  this  can 
be  said  ? — Downer's  Grove  Reporter. 


April  14,  1893. 

CoMK.\DES  OF  N.\PER  PosT: — Oiice  more  death 
has  claimed  one  of  our  nearest  and  dearest  friends, 
one  related  to  us  by  near  and  dear  ties,  a  daugh- 
ter of  a  soldier,  the  wife  of  a  soldier,  the  si.ster  of 
soldiers,  and  one  who  was  always  the  warm  friend 
of  a  .soldier,  and  in  view  of  these  facts  it  seems 
right  and  proper  that  this  Post  do  adopt  the  fol- 
lowing resolutions: 

\Vhkre.\s:  It  has  pleased  Divine  Providence 
to  remove  b\-  death  the  esteemed  and  beloved  wife 
of  Charles  Carpenter,  therefore, 

Rcsohtd:  That  we  tender  to  our  bereaved  com- 
rade and  his  family,  and  to  the  brothers  whose 
sister  has  pa&.sed  on  to  that  lietter  land,  our  heart- 
felt sympathies  for  them    in   their  bereavement. 


We  all  share  in  the  great  loss  which  > on  ha\e 
sustained,  but  we  hope  to  meet  her  again  when 
parting  shall  be  no  more. 

One  day  we  shall  find. 
In  the  limitless  dome. 
The  beautiful  home 
Of  our  love<l  ones  gone. 


S.  Rogers. 
Commander. 

— Downer 


G.  S 


HlGHE-S, 

Adjutant. 
Grove  Reporter. 


de.\th  of  mrs.  charles  carpenter. 

May  25,  1893. 

Whereas:  The  sacrifices  of  our  noble  L'niou 
women  were  scarcely  less  instrumental  itithe  sup- 
pression of  the  Great  Rebellion  than  were 
those  of  the  patriots  who  shouldered  the  musket 
and  marched  to  the  front  in  1S61 :  and 

Where.\s:  These  patriot  mothers,  wives,  sis- 
ters and  daughters,  with  the  dying  veterans,  are 
also  fast  passing  away;  therefore. 

Resolved.  That  the  association  of  the  sur\iving 
veterans  of  the  Thirteenth  Regiment  Illinois  In- 
fantr>-  has  heard  with  profound  sorrow  of  the 
death  of  Mrs.  Charles  Carpenter,  and  as  her  pres- 
ence while  living  alwavs  brought  cheer  and  in- 
spiration to  our  reunions  and  camp-fires,  may  our 
united  sympathies  sene  to  dispel,  somewhat,  the 
.shadow  hanging  over  Comrade  Carpenter's  deso- 
late home,  and  the  hearts  of  himself  and  kindred 
be  strengthened  and  sustained  in  their  great  af- 
fliction.    And  be  it  further 

Resolied.  That  as  death  carries  memory  with  it 
to  the  gra\e.  the  virtues  of  our  loved  ones  lost 
should  go  into  recorded  liistorA-,  so  as  not  to  be 
forgotten;  and  that  the  death  of  our  patriot  wo- 
men should  find  its  appropriate  record  alongside 
that  of  the  veteran  soldier.  —  The  Evening  Tele- 
graph. Dixon.  111. 


I^^^l 


__9 


jILLIAM  SCHATZ,  a  pioneer  painter  of 
Milton  Township.  DuPage  County,  was 
bom  in  Hamburgh,  Berks  County,  Pa., 
March  2,  1821.  and  is  the  second  son  of  Philip 
and  Mar>-  Schatz.  both  natives  of  the  same 
county.  His  grandfather,  Peter  Schatz,  who  was  a 
butcher  by  occupation,  ser\ed  as  a  soldier  in  the 
Revolution,  and  died  before  William  was  born. 
Elizabeth,  wife  of  Peter  Schatz.  was  a  native  of 


440 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


Baltimore,  of  German  descent,  and  lived  to  be 
over  eighty  years  old.  She  was  very  active  and 
industrious,  and  sun-ived  her  husband  many 
3-ears,  dying  at  Pottsville,  Pa.  Mary,  wife  of 
Peter  Schatz.  was  a  daughter  of  Abraham  Shol- 
lenberger,  a  native  of  Pennsylvania,  who  lived  in 
and  near  Hamburgh, and  engaged  in  the  manufact- 
ure of  potter\-ware.  She  died  September  20,  i860, 
aged  sixty -two  years,  one  month  and  three  days. 

Philip  Schatz,  only  son  of  his  parents,  was  born 
March  9,  1797,  and  was  early  apprenticed  to  a 
harness-maker,  but  abandoned  the  trade  on  com- 
pleting his  time.  For  many  years  he  tended  a 
canal  gate,  and  was  made  overseer  of  a  ten-mile 
section  of  the  Schuylkill  Canal.  This  position  he 
resigned  to  become  toll-keeper  on  the  Hamburgh 
bridge.  He  came  to  Illinois,  with  some  of  his  chil- 
dren in  1853,  and  later  went  with  them  to  Provi- 
dence (now  Grand  Rapids),  Ohio,  but  afterward 
returned  to  Wheaton,  where  he  died  at  the  resi- 
dence of  his  .son  William,  April  i,  1876.  His  wife 
died  at  Grand  Rapids  in  1858.  They  were  the  par- 
ents of  ten  children.  Alexander,  the  eldest,  came 
to  Wheaton  in  1852.  He  had  been  employed  for 
.seven  years  in  a  Pennsylvania  coal  mine,  .scarcely 
seeing  the  sun  in  all  that  time.  While  working  in 
a  cut  in  the  con.struction  of  the  Chicago  &  North- 
western Railway  near  Wheaton,  he  received  a 
sunstroke,  v.hich  nearly  cost  his  life,  and  so  weak- 
ened his  mind  that  he  eventually  became  insane, 
and  died  in  the  Jacksonville  Asylum,  where  he 
was  buried.  The  name  of  the  second  heads  this 
article,  and  his  biography  is  given  below.  Maria, 
the  third,  isthe  widow  of  Joseph  Mar.shall.re.siding 
at  Shenandoah,  Pa.  Sarah  married  William  Sav- 
age, and  died  at  Grand  Rapids.  Ohio.  Elizabeth, 
wife  of  Elias  Shomo,  died  at  Hamburgh,  Pa. 
Catharine  is  the  widow  of  William  R.  Wil.son,  and 
resides  at  Muskegon.  Mich.  Rebecca,  widow  of 
Alonzo  B.  Curtis,  resides  at  Glen  Ellyn.  DuPage 
County.  Amanda  married  Andrew  Hantz,  and 
after  his  death  became  the  wife  of  William  Sav- 
age. She  died  at  Grand  Rapids.  Ohio.  Su.san, 
wife  of  Allen  B.  Lewis,  resides  in  Reading,  Pa. 
Barbara,  Mrs.  Solomon  Mertz.  lives  at  Doland, 
S.   Dak. 

William  Schatz  was  reared  in  his  native  village. 


attending  school  but  very  little.  At  eighteen,  he 
began  a  three-years  apprenticeship  at  chair-mak- 
ing and  painting,  and  for  fifteen  years  after  com- 
pleting his  term,  he  engaged  in  the  business  of 
decorating  chairs.  During  this  time  he  attended 
school  and  .studied  privately,  so  that  he  became  a 
well-informed  citizen.  His  health  becoming  im- 
paired by  the  inhalation  of  the  fumes  of  his  paint- 
ing materials,  he  opened  a  grocery  store  at  Ham- 
burgh, which  his  wife  attended  when  he  was  un- 
able to  work,  and  secured  a  profitable  trade.  One 
night  a  freshet  arose  and  ruined  his  stock,  just  af- 
ter he  had  laid  in  a  large  supply  of  goods.  At 
daybreak,  in  his  efforts  to  sa\e  something,  Mr. 
Schatz  came  near  being  drowned,  and  only  es- 
caped by  swimming.  After  taking  his  family  to 
a  place  of  safety,  he  relea.sed  some  swine  confined 
in  the  yard,  and  then  turned  his  attention  to  his 
store,  but  nothing  could  be  saved  from  the  rap- 
idly-rising waters,  and  he  was  glad  to  escape  with 
his  life.  After  this  di.saster,  he  secured  the  con- 
sent of  his  wife  to  a  removal  to  Illinois,  which  he 
had  vi.sited  in  1853.  In  December,  1854,  he 
came,  with  his  family,  to  Wheaton,  and  in  the 
spring  following  went  to  Danby  ( now  Glen  El- 
lyn ) ,  where  he  built  a  hou.se  and  dwelt  twelve 
years.  Since  coming  to  Illinois,  he  has  followed 
house-painting,  from  which  he  has  not  yet  wholly 
retired,  though  now  .sevent>-three  years  old.  In 
1867.  Mr.  vSchatz  sold  his  Glen  Ellyn  property 
and  bought  his  present  home,  at  the  corner  of 
Bird  and  Illinois  Streets,  Wheaton,  which  he  im- 
proved b}'  addition  and  otherwise.  His  long  life 
of  indu.stry  and  integrity  has  secured  for  him  the 
respect  and  confidence  of  the  entire  communitv. 
He  is  a  faithful  member  of  the  Methodi.st  Church, 
and  adheres  to  the  Prohibition  party,  for  which 
he  for.sook  the  Democratic  on  the  organization  of 
the  former.  His  only  public  office  consi.sted  in 
one  term  as  Collector  of  Milton  Township. 

April  22.  1S43,  at  Hamburgh,  Mr.  Schatz  mar- 
ried Mar\-  Lins.  who  was  born  in  Albany  Town- 
ship. Berks  County.  Pa.,  Febraan.  22,  182 1. 
She  was  a  daughter  of  David  Lins  and  Mar>-, 
daughter  of  Charles  Ross.  She  died  at  Wheaton. 
January  31,  1868,  and  December  24,  1870,  Mr. 
Schatz  was  married  to  Mrs.  Anna  Maria  Lowrie. 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


-I4> 


The  latter  was  a  daughter  of  William  Kidson,  an 
Englishman,  and  was  born  at  Craddock,  Cape 
Colony,  Africa.  April  13.  1S31.  She  married 
Dr.  John  Lowrie.  and  with  him  started  at  once 
for  America.  He  was  a  well-known  physician  of 
DuPage  County,  having  practiced  medicine  at 
Xaperville  and  Wayne,  as  well  as  Chicago.  He 
died  at  sea.  while  01  route  to  Africa  to  secure  his 
wife's  inheritance.  Their  five  daughters  are 
as  follows:  Mina.  who  is  residing  in  Chicago: 
Elizabeth,  in  Nebraska:  Ella.  Mrs.  Emor>-  Whea- 
ton,  of  Wheaton:  Cora.  Mrs.  Cowan,  of  Lanark, 
111. :  and  Ada.  a  resident  of  Chicago.  Mrs.  Anna 
M.  Schatz  died  at  Wheaton.  Februar>-  20,  1875. 
aged  forty-three  years,  ten  months  and  seven 
days. 

Of  the  nine  children  of  Mr.  Schatz,  seven  were 
the  offspring  of  his  first  wife.  Following  are  their 
names,  in  order  of  birth,  with  residence:  Philip, 
associated  with  his  father  at  \\'heaton:  Alice  Re- 
becca, Mrs.  Harry  W.  ShoUenberger :  Martha, 
wife  of  Conrad  William  Erby:  William  W..  of 
Chicago:  Alonzo.  a  joume>Tiian  painter,  of  Whea- 
ton: Caroline  Mrs.  Robert  Bennett.  Chicago:  Ma- 
tilda, deceased,  who  was  the  wife  of  George  W. 
Hageman  ( see  biography) :  Fennig  Lins  and  Anna 
Maud  who  reside  with  their  father. 


;^H-^[ 


ITDWIN  R.  C0N\-ERSE,  a  retired  farmer 
1^  residing  in  Palatine,  who  by  well-directed 
I  efforts,  enterprise  and  industry-  in  former 
years  has  acquired  a  capital  which  now  enables 
him  to  lay  aside  business  cares,  is  numbered 
among  the  native  sons  of  Cook  County,  and  also 
among  its  early  settlers.  Therefore  with  pleasure 
we  present  to  our  readers  this  record  of  his  life. 
He  was  lx>rn  in  Elk  Grove  Township,  on  the  5th 
of  June,  1846.  and  is  a  son  of  Joseph  Converse, 
who  came  to  the  West  in  an  early  day  and  is 
numbered  among  the  pioneers  of  Cook  County  of 
1836.  He  settled  in  Elk  Grove  Township,  where 
he  made  a  claim,  entering  the  land  when  it  came 
into  market.  It  was  a  wild  and  unimproved 
tract,  but  he  at  once  began  its  cultivation   and 


transformed  it  into  a  good  farm.  In  1843  he  re- 
turned to  Vermont,  and  married  Catherine  Lyon, 
a  native  of  that  State.  He  then  brought  his  bride 
to  the  West  and  resumed  agricultural  pursuits. 
He  made  a  good  home,  developed  a  fine  farm  of 
two  hundred  acres,  and  continued  its  cultivation 
until  1880,  when  he  rented  his  property  and  re- 
moved to  Palatine,  where  for  several  years  he 
lived  retired.  His  death  occurred  on  the  i6th  of 
December,  1892,  at  the  age  of  seventj-seven  years. 
His  wife  passed  away  about  two  years  previous, 
dying  in  May,  1891.  Both  were  buried  in  Pala- 
tine Cemeter\-,  where  a  substantial  marble  monu- 
ment marks  their  last  resting-place.  In""  the  Con- 
verse family  were  two  sons.  The  elder,  Eugene, 
after  arriving  at  mature  years,  lived  with  his 
brother  until  his  death,  which  occurred  December 
6.  1892.  His  remains  were  also  interred  in  Pala- 
tine Cemeter}-. 

Upon  the  old  homestead  farm,  Edwin  R.  spent 
the  days  of  his  boyhood  and  youth.  He  acquired 
a  good  education  in  the  Arlington  Heights  Acad- 
emy, and  after  completing  his  studies  he  purchased 
a  farm  in  connection  with  his  brother,  and  iji  part- 
nership they  carried  on  business.  They  were  suc- 
cessful agriculturists,  and  the  well-tilled  fields  and 
neat  appearance  of  the  place  indicated  their  thrift 
and  enterprise.  In  the  spring  of  1S92.  however, 
our  subject  rented  his  farm  and  came  to  Palatine. 
He  has  recently  completed  a  large  and  elegant 
residence,  one  of  the  finest  in  the  town,  and  is 
now  making  his  home  here. 

On  the  2d  of  December,  18S0.  in  Lake  City, 
Minn.,  Mr.  Converse  was  united  in  marriage  with 
Miss  Zilpha  Gibbs,  daughter  of  Oliver  Gibbs,  Jr., 
anativeof\'emiont.  who.  when  a  lad  often  years, 
emigrated  with  his  parents  to  Wisconsin.  During 
the  greater  part  of  his  life  he  has  been  a  journal- 
ist and  is  a  man  of  superior  education.  He  now 
resides  upon  a  ranch  in  South  Dakota,  where  he 
is  engaged  in  stock-raising.  Mrs.  Converse  was 
lx>m  in  Prescott.  Wis.,  and  was  educated  in 
Washington,  D.  C,  and  Lake  City,  Minn.  Three 
children  have  been  bom  unto  our  subject  and  his 
wife,  namely:     Guy  M..    Rose  C.  and  Jo  Oliver. 

Since  becoming  a  voter.  Mr.  Converse  has  been 
identified  with    the    Republican  party,   and  is  a 


442 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


warm  advocate  of  its  measures.  The  cause  of 
education  finds  in  him  a  warm  friend,  and  he  does 
all  in  his  power  for  its  advancement.  He  has 
served  as  Township  Trustee  for  six  years,  but  has 
never  been  an  office-seeker.  A  man  of  integrit>- 
and  upright  character,  he  has  the  confidence  and 
high  regard  of  all  who  know  him.  His  entire 
life  has  been  passed  in  Cook  County,  atid  in  its 
history  he  well  deserves  representation. 


^+^ 


^3 


(=^ 


61  DAM  C.  ORR  is  one  of  the  highly -esteemed 
LI  citizens  of  Park  Ridge.  His  home  is  the 
/  1  centerof  sociability,  and  there  men  of  culture 
delight  to  gather  and  discu.ss  literary  and  other 
topics  which  tend  to  mental  advancement.  Mr. 
Orr  was  born  in  Lachute,  in  the  province  of  Que- 
bec, Canada,  November  g.  1H39,  and  is  a  son  of 
Samuel  R.  and  Jane  (Hicks)  Orr.  On  the  pa- 
ternal side  our  subject  came  from  the  old  Mc- 
Lean family,  of  Scotland.  At  length,  however, 
the  family  became  divided  in  the  Scottish  feuds, 
and  those  who  located  in  the  Lowlands  took  the 
name  of  Ayrs,  which  was  sub.sequently  changed 
into  the  present  mode  of  spelling. 

Samuel  Orr  crossed  the  Atlantic  to  Canada  in 
1817.  He  married  Miss  Hicks,  who  was  horn  in 
the  north  of  Ireland,  although  her  father  was  of 
Scotch  descent  and  her  mother  of  English  ex- 
traction. Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Orr  were  born  ten 
children,  three  of  whom  came  to  the  United  States. 
Six  of  the  nmuber  remain  in  Canada,  and  Sarah 
is  now  decea.sed.  Of  the  brothers,  E^lias  S.  occu- 
pies the  position  of  Registrar  of  Compton  County, 
Quebec,  and  Capt.  Wesley  F.  is  a  member  of  the 
Citj-  Council  of  Calgan,-,  province  of  Alberta. 
The  other  brothers  are  living  quiet  lives  in  their 
native  land. 

In  the  common  schools  of  his  native  country, 
Adam  C.  Orr  acquired  a  good  English  education. 
In  his  father's  country  store  he  received  his  first 
lessons  in  business,  but  he  left  mercantile  pur- 
suits to  engage  in  teaching,  which  profession  he 
successfully  followed  for  thirteen  years  in  Canada. 
When  he  left  that  country  he  was  occup3-ing  the 


position  (if  Principal  of  the  Central  ,School  of  St. 
Marj's.  It  was  in  1S70  that  he  came  to  Chicago, 
where  .soon  after  he  engaged  as  Superintendent 
with  the  Jillette  Chemical  Works. 

On  the  ist  of  October,  1876,  Mr.  Orr  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Cheo  Petrie,  who 
was  born  in  Crystal  Lake,  McHenn,-  Countj-,  111., 
December  10,  1848.  Her  parents,  Henry  and 
Maria  (Ruggles)  Petrie,  were  of  German  extrac- 
tion, and  were  among  the  early  settlers  of  north- 
ea.stern  Illinois,  whence  they  came  from  the  vi- 
cinity of  Albany,  N.  Y.  To  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Orr 
was  born  a  son,  Samuel  Henn,',  who  died  at  the 
age  of  thirteen  years.  His  loss  will  always  be 
mourned  by  his  parents,  for  he  was  their  only 
child  and  particularly  dear  to  them.  He  was  a 
boy  who  attracted  almost  universal  attention  be- 
cause of  his  perfect  physique.  He  was  a  member 
of  a  company  of  Zouaves,  in  which  he  held  the 
highest  office,  and  was  laid  to  rest  in  their  uni- 
form. The  flag  that  floats  from  the  .school  build- 
ing at  Park  Ridge  was  given  by  his  mother  with 
appropriate  ceremony  to  the  Board  of  Pxlucation 
in  memory  of  her  darling  boy. 

Both  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Orr  hold  an  enviable  posi- 
tion in  .social  circles  where  true  worth  and  intel- . 
ligcnce  are  received  as  the  pas.sports  into  good 
society.  They  have  made  their  home  in  Park 
Ridge  since  188 1.  Mr.  Orr  is  a  man  of  aesthetic 
ta.stes,  of  a  refined  and  cultured  nature,  and  takes 
great  interest  in  literar\-  work  aufl  mental  im- 
provement. 


<=\ 


^-^[ 


-S] 


Gl  NNETTE  BENNETT,  M.  D,  is  engaged  in 
I  I  the  practice  of  medicine  in  Park  Ridge,  where 
I  I  she  located  in  October,  1892.  The  women 
who  have  taken  up  this  line  of  work  have  shown 
that  it  is  a  profession  in  which  they  can  win  the 
highest  success.  They  seem  to  possess  special 
adaptability  for  the  work,  for  they  have  the  gen- 
tle touch  and  manner  which  men  often  lack  in  the 
sick  room,  and  at  the  same  time  they  are  ac- 
knowledged the  equals  of  men  in  acquired  skill 
and  abilitv. 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


443 


Dr.  Bennett  is  a  daui; liter  of  tieorge  and  Ma- 
hala  I  Pittsburg  I  Beiniett.  Her  father  was  a 
merchant,  who  also  engaged  in  fanning.  She  ac- 
quired her  literar>-  ethication  in  the  schools  of 
Oxford  County,  Me.,  and  in  1887  left  her  home 
in  the  Pine  Tree  State,  coming  to  the  West  with 
a  view  to  studying  and  ultimately  practicing  med- 
icine. She  had  previously  studied  to  some  extent 
with  Dr.  G.  A.  Brown,  a  general  medical  practi- 
tioner of  Norway.  Oxford  County.  Me.  In  1.S91 
her  father  died,  and  she  was  thus  thrown  upon 
her  own  resources.  She  has  not  only  ably  pro- 
vided for  herself,  but  also  gives  a  home  to  her 
sister,  and  with  them  lives  their  brother  Herbert, 
who  is  now  a  student  in  Hahnemann  College. 

Dr.  Bennett  was  born  on  St.  Patrick's  Day. 
March  17,  1859.  and  is  therefore  still  a  young 
woman,  with  probably  a  long  future  before  her  in 
which  to  win  prominence  in  the  work  which  she 
has  undertaken.  She  is  a  clo.se  student  of  the 
profession,  does  all  in  her  power  to  perfect  her- 
self therein,  and  po.s.se.sses  the  progressive  .spirit 
that  is  needful  in  a  first-class  physician.  She  is 
rapidly  acquiring  a  good  practice,  which  is  an 
acknowledged  tribute  to  her  .skill  and  ability.  A 
large  business  is  certainlv  well  merited  by  her. 


6 


HARLES  P.  BRYAN  was  boni  in  Chicago. 
October  2.  1855.  His  childhood  was  spent 
at  Elmhurst,  where  his  parents  took  up  their 
residence  in  1856.  Young  Brjan  completed  his 
education  at    the  University  of  Yirginia  and  the 


Columbia  Law  .School.  He  was  admitted  to  the 
Bar  in  Washington.  D.  C.,  in  1878.  The  follow- 
ing year  he  removed  to  Colorado,  where  he  en- 
gagetl  in  mining  and  in  editorial  and  literary 
work.  He  editetl  the  Denver  Inter  Oiraii  and  the 
Colorado  Mining  Gazette,  which  he  owned,  and 
was  elected  President  of  the  Colorado  Editorial 
As.sociation  in  1S84.  A  year  after  his  arrival  in 
the  Rocky  Mountains  he  was  chosen  to  repre.sent 
Clear  Creek  County  in  the  Legislature,  of  which 
he  was  the  youngest  member.  He  was  Chainnan 
of  the  Railroad  Committee.  As  champion  of  the 
{leople  against  monopolies,  he  was  called  the 
"Plumed  Knight  of  the  Rockies.  "  He  had  a 
voice  in  every  Republican  State  convention  during 
his  sojourn  in  Colorado,  and  stumped  the  State 
for  Blaine.  Twice  he  was  urged  \>\  the  slate- 
makers,  but  declined  to  allow  his  name  to  be  pre- 
sented to  the  Republican  State  Convention  as  a  can- 
didate for  Secretar\-  of  State.  The  probable  nom- 
ination for  Lieutenant  Governor  was  also  ofTered 
him  as  an  inducement  to  remain  in  Colorado. 
Filial  duty,  however,  called  him  back  to  Illinois 
in  1885. 

In  1890,  Col.  Bryan  was,  unsolicited,  nominated 
for  the  Legislature  and  elected.  In  1892,  he  was 
re-elected  to  represent  DuPage  County.  His  chief 
efforts  in  the  Legislature  have  been  directed  to- 
ward ballot  reform.  World's  Fair  and  National 
Guard  measures,  and  tho.se  locally  of  interest  to 
his  constituents.  As  a  boy,  he  entered  the  First 
Regiment  of  Illinois  National  Guards,  and  has 
nearly  ever  since  served  in  the  State  troops  of  Illi- 
nois or  Colorado,  having  been  commissioned  Aide- 
de- Camp  by  four  Governors.  Col.  Bryan  is  now 
on  the  general  staff  of  the  Illinois  National 
Guard.  His  occupation  is  that  of  contributor  to 
newspapers  and  magazines,  his  line  of  work  be- 
ing editorial,  hi.storical  and  descriptive. 

The  paternal  and  maternal  families  of  the  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch,  the  Bry-ans  and  the  Pages,  set- 
tled in  \'irginia  about  1660.  They  intermarried 
with  the  Lees,  the  Carters,  Barbours,  Crawfords 
and  Penns.  Daniel  Bryan,  the  grandfather  of 
Charles,  made  .speeches  in  the  Senate  of  \'irginia 
as  far  back  as  the  '30s  advocating  the  abolition 
of  slavery.     On  account  of  his  pronounced  I'liion 


444 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


views  he  endangered  his  life  at  Alexandria  at  the 
beginning  of  the  late  war.  His  son,  Thomas  B. 
Bn,-an,  came  to  Illinois  in  1852.  As  a  member  of 
the  Union  Defense  Committee,  as  President  of  the 
Soldiers'  liome  and  Sanitary  Fair,  and  in  aiding 
to  equip  regiments  for  the  war,  he  constantly 
showed  his  loyalt.\  to  the  Union.  Company  H 
of  the  One  Hundred  and  Fifth  Illinois  Infantry, 
composed  of  the  flower  of  the  youth  of  Du Page 
County,  was  called  the  "  Br>an  Blues"  in  honor 
of  the  liberality  of  Thomas  B.  Bnan.  As  cham- 
pion of  Chicago  for  the  site  of  the  World's  Fair  in 
.speeches  made  in  Washington  and  other  cities,  as 
\'ice-President  of  the  Columbian  Exposition,  and 
as  Commissioner-at- Large  to  Europe,  Mr.  Bryan 
has  won  international  fame.  His  son  has  seconded 
him  in  all  these  efforts.  Famous  men  from  all 
over  the  world  have  been  entertained  at  the 
"Bird's  Nest,"  the  Br>ans'  home.  Edward  Ev- 
erett. President  and  Mrs.  Harrison,  the  Logans, 
Blaines,  Cardinal  Gibbons,  princes,  nobility  and 
ministers  and  commissioners  from  nearly  ever>' 
land  have  been  guests  at  this  beautiful  home, 
who.se  hospitalities  have  helped  to  give  renown  to 
Elmhurst  and  to  DuPage  County. 


-=), 


1-^+^ 


fTJ 


30HX  Ql'IXCV  ADAMS,  a  leading  business 
man  of  Chicago  and  a  resident  of  \\'heaton, 
was  born  November  23,  1824,  at  Hopkinton, 
Middlesex  County,  Mass.,  where  he  was  reared 
on  a  fann.  He  is  a  lineal  descendant  of  Henry 
Adams,  who  came  from  England  to  Massachu- 
setts early  in  the  seventeenth  century,  and  was 
the  progenitor  of  many  noted  citizens  of  the  United 
States,  some  of  whom  acquired  a  national  reputa- 
tion. His  great-grandfather.  William  Adams,  was 
an  ocean  trader,  and  died  in  Cuba,  while  a  re.sident 
there.  His  grandfather,  Benjamin  Adams,  who 
was  born  in  Braintree,wasa  farmer  in  Hopkinton. 
The  founders  of  the  nation  were  made  of  stern 
material,  and  the  same  spirit  of  enterprise,  for- 
titude and  per.se\erance  which  led  them  to  settle 
and  develop  rugged  New  England,  has  been  be- 
queathed to  their  posterity,  and  the\-  are  entitled 


to  the  credit  of  .settling  the  whole  northern  half  of 
the  United  States,  to  which  the\-  have  given  a  di- 
recting force  in  de\-eloping  modern  progress,  moral 
and  physical.  The.se  qualities  were  inherited  by 
the  subject  of  this  biography  in  a  marked  degree, 
as  the  record  of  his  life  will  show.  His  father, 
John  Adams,  died  at  the  age  of  thirty-nine  years, 
when  this  son  was  but  five.  He  is  the  sixth  in  a 
family  of  five  .sons  and  two  daughters,  and  on  his 
mother,  Joanna  Adams,  devolved  the  care  and 
education  of  her  offspring.  The  little  farm  on 
which  the\-  dwelt  was  encumbered  b>-  a  mortgage 
at  the  death  of  the  head  of  the  family,  but  they 
set  courageou.sly  at  work  to  save  their  home.  All 
were  compelled  to  toil  in  this  common  pursuit, 
and  little  opportunity  was  found  for  acquiring  an 
education.  Eight  to  twelve  weeks  in  the  winter 
school  constituted  the  educational  advantages  of 
this  subject  up  to  the  time  when  he  attained  his 
majority.  On  one  occasion,  when  marketing  .some 
of  the  farm  produce,  besought  employment  in  a 
store  as  a  means  of  attaining  .some  connnercial 
knowledge,  but  he  was  told  by  llie  merchant, 
who  nuist  have  been  a  poor  student  of  human  na- 
ture, that  the  farm  was  the  field  best  suited  to  his 
ability.  This  served  only  as  a  spur  to  his  pride 
and  ambition,  and  he  set  to  work  to  pro\e  that 
he  posse.s.sed  the  ability  to  make  his  way  in  the 
world.  B\'  h'ls  own  exertions  he  secured  means 
to  attend  the  academies  at  Leicester  and  Worces- 
ter, and  after  a  family  council  it  was  decided  to 
move  to  the  West,  where  a  young  man  might  find 
opportunities  to  grow  with  the  countn.-. 

In  1851  the  farm  was  sold,  and,  accompanied  by 
his  mother  and  .sister,  Mr.  Adams  came  to  Chi- 
cago, where  his  first  .step  was  the  completion  of  a 
course  at  Bell's  Commercial  College.  He  then 
engaged,  at  Belvidere  and  Rockford,  in  the  pur- 
chase of  grain,  which  was  .shipped  to  Chicago. 
From  1853  to  1855  he  engaged  in  thecoal  business 
in  Chicago, having  his  yard  on  North  Water  Street, 
and  then  united  with  his  brothers,  B.  and  G.  P. 
Adams,  in  forming  the  firm  of  B.  Adams  &  Co., 
for  conducting  a  grain  and  milling  business. 
This  firm  was  verj-  successful,  and  built  one  of 
the  largest  mills  in  the  city.  Two  years  after  its 
organization,  G.  P.  Adams  withdrew,  but  the  firm 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


445 


c-oiitinued  under  the  original  title  until  the  great 
fire  of  187 1,  since  which  time  J.  O.  Adams  has 
oj)erated  alone.  Since  the  second  year  of  its  ex- 
istence, he  has  been  a  member  of  the  Board  of 
Trade,  and  still  retains  ticket  number  nine.  Dur- 
ing his  connection  with  the  Board,  he  has  .stead- 
fastly refused  to  enter  any  combination  for  con- 
trolling the  market,  and  has  realized  a  hand.some 
fortune  from  legitimate  trading,  a  course  which 
it  has  cost  many  operators  their  entire  fortune  to 
learn  is  the  only  wise  and  just  one.  Fore.seeing 
the  growth  of  Chicago,  and  realizing  the  stability 
of  real  estate  as  an  investment,  Mr.  Adams  early 
began  to  secure  desirable  sites  in  Chicago,  and  is 
now  the  owner  of  man\-  of  the  most  valuable 
buildings  in  the  business  district,  all  his  property 
being  improved. 

A  just  regard  for  the  quiet,  modest  nature  of 
Mr.  Adams  forbids  any  extended  notice  of  his 
numerous  charitable  and  philanthropic  acts,  but 
some  of  them  cannot  be  concealed.  In  1892  he 
built  at  Wlieaton  a  beautiful  librar\-,  which  he 
has  endowed  with  the  owniership  of  improved 
Chicago  property,  thus  securing  an  income  for  its 
maintenance.  This  is  a  substantial  and  orna- 
mental stone  structure,  in  which  were  placed  .sev- 
eral thousand  volumes  as  a  nucleus,  and  was  pre- 
-sented  to  the  cit\-  of  Wheaton  to  be  controlled  b\- 
a  local  Board  of  Trustees.  With  strong  conver- 
.sational  powers,  po.ssessed  of  a  mind  abo\-e  frivoli- 
ties, Mr.  Adams  is  not  wont  to  form  miscellane- 
ous acquaintances,  but  loves  to  choose  congenial 
companions,  to  whom  he  is  knowni  as  the  most 
warm-hearted  and  companionable  of  men,  while 
to  many  he  appears  as  somewhat  austere.  He  is 
an  active  member  and  liberal  contributor  to  the 
support  of  the  Congregational  Church  of  Whea- 
ton. In  j)olitical  sentiment,  he  is  a  Republican 
on  principle,  but  is  in  no  .sense  a  politician,  using 
his  influence  and  vote  only  to  secure  the  best  gov- 
ernment possible.  He  is  fond  of  his  home,  which 
has  been  at  Wheaton  since  1S76.  His  re.sidence 
stands  in  the  midst  of  ample  grounds,  surrounded 
by  greenhouses,  flowers  and  shrubbery,  and  all 
the  accessories  of  an  ideal  suburban  home. 

On  the  19th  of  Januan,-,  1859,  Mr.  Adams  mar- 
ried   Miss   Manila  F.,   daughter  of  William  A. 


Phipps.  of  Hopkinton.  Mass.  She  was  a  de- 
scendant of  the  same  progenitor  as  Sir  William 
Phipps,  one  of  the  early  residents  of  Massachu- 
setts, who  was  knighted  by  the  English  king  for 
honesty  in  delivering  to  the  sovereign  the  entire 
proceeds  of  a  Spanish  prize  captured  by  the 
doughty  captain.  Mrs.  Adams  pa.ssed  away  in 
1874.  and  is  survived  by  two  of  her  four  chil- 
dren, the  others  dying  in  infancy.  William  P. 
Adams,  the  son.  who  has  his  winter  home  at 
Wheaton,  is  the  proprietor  of  one  of  the  finest 
wheat  farms  in  Dakota,  consisting  of  five  thou- 
sand acres.  Kate  S.  Adams,  the  daughter, 
who  presides  so  ably  over  her  father's  household. 
was  educated  at  Rockford  and  \'assar.  and  is  a 
patron  of  art  and  literature,  giving  especial  care 
to  the  memorial  librar>-  at  Wheaton  and  the  Chi 
cago  Art  Institute. 


i^-f^ 


[^^ 


p|EN.  BENJAMIN  JEFFREY  SWEET,  de 
l_  ceased,  was  for  many  years  a  well-known 
^_J  and  prominent  citizen  of  Cook  County,  and 
the  history-  of  the  community  would  be  incomplete 
without  a  record  of  his  life.  A  native  of  Clinton 
County.  N.  Y..  he  was  bom  April  24,  1832. 
His  parents  were  Rev.  James  and  Charlotte  (  Xew- 
e\l)  Sweet.  Their  family  numbered  eight  chil- 
dren who  grew  to  mature  >ears.  and  sexeral  who 
died  in  childhood.  When  our  subject  was  a 
youth  of  sixteen,  the  family  removed  to  Stock- 
bridge,  Wis.,  where  the  father  was  employed  as  a 
circuit  preacher  of  the  Christian  Church  for  some 
years.  He  also  devoted  much  time  to  missionarv 
work  among  the  Stockbridge  Indians.  He  was  an 
eloquent  sfieaker.  and  the  many  excellencies  of  his 
character  won  him  the  love  and  confidence  of  all 
with  whom  he  was  brought  in  contact.  His  death 
occurred  during  the  war,  and  his  wife  passed 
away  in  1875.  Their  family  numbered  the  follow- 
ing: Benjamin  J.,  of  this  sketch;  John  Jay,  who 
was  a  memlier  of  Company  K,  Fourth  Wisconsin 
Cavalry,  and  was  killed  at  Port  Hudson  during 
the  late  war;  Elbert  E..  now  of  Wisconsin:  Mrs. 
Belinda  Blodgett,  of  Charlotte,   Mich.:   Mrs    An- 


446 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


gusta  Blodgett,  of  Charlotte,  Mich.;  Mary,  who 
lives  in  Wisconsin;  Rose,  wife  ofObed  Dodge;  and 
Mettie,  the  youngest  daughter. 

When  the  family  moved  to  the  frontier,  they 
were  in  limited  circumstances,  and  Gen.  Sweet 
aided  in  their  support  by  chopping  wood  and  do- 
ing farm  work.  He  was  ambitious  to  secure  an 
education,  and  to  this  end  studied  at  night,  and 
when  he  had  acquired  a  sufficient  sum  to  pay  his 
tuition,  he  attended  Appleton  Academy  for  two 
terms.  He  then  taught  school  at  Brothertown, 
and  all  tliis  time  he  was  carrying  on  the  farm  and 
contiiuiing  his  studies  after  the  labors  of  the  day 
were  over. 

Mr.  Sweet  was  married  May  i,  1851,  at  the  age 
of  nineteen,  to  Lovisa,  daughter  of  Elihu  and 
Martha  (Chubbuck)  Denslow,  of  Stockbridge, 
Wis. ,  w^ho  had  also  lived  near  the  Sw'eet  family 
in  Clinton  County,  N.  Y.  After  his  marriage, 
Gen.  Sweet  continued  teaching,  and  also  took  up 
the  study  of  law  in  Stockbridge.  At  length  he 
was  admitted  to  the  Bar  and  opened  an  office  in 
Chilton,  Wis.  In  185S,  he  was  elected  to  the 
Wisconsin  Senate,  and  .served  for  two  terms,  but 
when  the  war  broke  out  he  put  aside  all  other 
considerations  to  enter  the  country's  service.  He 
aided  in  raising  the  vSixth  Regiment  of  Wisconsin 
\'olunteers,  of  which  he  was  commissioned  Major, 
and  also  helped  to  organize  the  Fourth  Wisconsin 
Infantrj-.  His  command  was  assigned  to  the 
Arm\-  of  the  Potomac,  and  while  encamped  in  \'ir- 
ginia,  opposite  the  capital,  he  and  Gen.  Bragg, 
who  then  held  the  rank  of  Captain,  occupied  a 
cabin  together  at  Arlington  Heights.  The  inac- 
tion of  the  army  in  the  spring  of  1862  cau.sed  him 
to  resign,  and  he  returned  home,  but  the  country 
had  his  war  allegiance,  and  he  aided  in  organiz- 
ing the  Twenty-first  and  Twenty-second  Wis- 
consin Regiments,  being  made  Colonel  of  the 
Twenty-first,  which  was  assigned  to  the  Anny  of 
the  Cumberland.  At  the  battle  of  Champion 
Hills,  Col.  Sweet  was  seriously  wounded  in  the 
neck  and  right  elbow.  He  was  verA-  ill  for  a 
year  and  lost  the  use  of  his  arm,  but  at  the  earliest 
possible  moment  he  again  went  to  the  front,  and 
at  Gallatin,  Tenn.,  while  still  in  poor  health,  built 
a  fort.     Later  he  was  appointed  Colonel   of  the 


Eighth  \'eteran  Reserve  Corps,  and  did  guard  and 
court-martial  duty  in  Philadelphia,  from  whence 
he  came  to  Chicago  to  take  command  of  Camp 
Douglas,  of  which  he  was  in  charge  until  the 
close  of  the  war.  He  was  promoted  to  the  rank 
of  Brigadier-General  in  1865.  He  had  from  eight 
to  ten  thousand  prisoners  under  his  care,  with  a 
very  small  guard,  and  during  this  time  the  no- 
torious conspiracy  was  formed  for  liberating  the 
prisoners  and  capturing  the  city,  but  the  plan 
was  discovered  and  thwarted  by  the  heroic  ef- 
forts of  Gen.  Sweet.  No  truer  soldier  fought  un- 
der the  Stars  and  vStripes,  or  was  more  loyal  to  the 
cau.se  of  the  Union. 

When  the  countr>-  no  longer  needed  his  serv- 
ices, (ien.  Sweet  returned  to  Chilton,  where  his 
family  had  remained  during  his  absence,  and  re- 
sumed law  practice,  l)ut  his  old  clients  had  gone 
elsewhere  while  he  was  at  the  front,  .so  he  changed 
his  place  of  residence.  In  1868,  he  opened  a  law 
office  in  Chicago  and  established  his  family  upon 
a  farm  near  Lombard,  twenty  miles  from  the  city. 
The  law  firm  of  ,Sweet,  Wil.son  &  Vallette  was 
formed  and  did  business  for  .some  time.  Mr.  vSweet 
was  appointed  I'nited  States  Pension  Agent  at 
Chicago  by  President  Grant,  and  held  that  po.si- 
tion  until  1870.  when  he  was  promoted  to  be  Su- 
pervisor of  Internal  Revenue.  After  the  great  Chi- 
cago fire  of  1 87 1,  he  received  the  appointment  of 
First  Deputy  Commissioner  of  Internal  Revenue 
for  the  I'nited  .States,  and  in  1872  took  his  place 
in  W'ashington,  .severing  his  connection  with  the 
law  office  in  Chicago.  The  family,  however,  re- 
mained at  Lombard.  While  discharging  his  du- 
ties in  the  Capitol  City,  he  was  taken  ill  with  ty- 
phoid pneumonia,  and  died  a  week  later,  on  the  1st 
of  January,  1874. 

Mrs.  Sweet  was  killed  b\-  the  cars  in  Lom- 
bard, August  14,  1878,  at  the  age  of  fort3--eight. 
They  were  people  of  prominence  and  ever  gave 
their  support  to  the  promotion  of  those  interests 
which  they  belie\-ed  would  be  of  benefit  to  the 
conununity.  They  usually  attended  and  contri- 
buted to  the  church  nearest  their  home,  but  were 
liberal  in  religious  belief.  Their  family  num- 
bered five  children,  as  follows:  Ada  C,  who  is 
United  States  Pen.sion  Solicitor  in  Chicago,  and  is 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


+47 


a  lady  of  rare  intelligence  and  ability. who  is  widely 
known  for  her  charitable  and  philanthropic  la- 
bors; Lawrence  \V..  who  died  at  the  age  of  seven- 
teen, just  previous  to  his  father's  death:  Minnie, 
who  was  the  wife  of  C.  F.  Weber,  of  Chicago, 
and  who  is  now  deceased;  Martha  Winifred,  a 
well-known  writer  on  the  staff  of  the  San  Fran- 
cisco J-xaminfr,  and  wife  of  Orlow  Black,  of  San 
Francisco.  Cal. :  and  Benjamin  J effi^ey,  who  lives  in 
Chicago. 

Mr.  Sweet  was  a  man  of  strong  conviction  and 
was  inflexible  in  his  supjxjrt  of  what  he  believed 
to  be  right.  He  was  a  wann  advocate  of  aboli- 
tion, and  in  1856  he  made  speeches  throughout 
Wisconsin  iu  support  of  Fremont.  He  carried 
Calumet  Counts-  for  Gen.  Grant,  the  only  time  it 
ever  gave  a  Republican  majority.  In  manner  he 
was  genial,  friendly  and  unassuming,  and  wher- 
ever he  went  he  won  friends.  Even  those  op- 
ix)sed  to  him  politically  had  for  him  the  highest 
respect.  He  was  a  diligent  student,  and  mas- 
tered German  and  also  studied  music  after  he  had 
arrived  at  mature  \ears.  Every  dut\'  de\-olving 
upon  him  was  faithfully  performed,  ever>-  trust 
ref)o,sed  in  him  was  discharged  with  fidelity,  and 
as  a  citizen,  friend,  and  bu.sinesss  man  he  was 
ever  honorable,  just  and  true. 


(Tames  urra  Clifford  was  born  Decem- 

I  ber  8,  1856.  at  Salem,  Kenosha  County. 
^J  Wis.,  being  the  son  of  Emen,-  and  Mar>-  Jane 
(Osgood)  Clifford.  He  comes  of  English  ances- 
tr>-,  and  his  forefathers  were  among  the  earl\-  set- 
tlers of  the  Xew  England  States.  His  patenial 
grandparents.  John  and  Nancy  1  Ray )  Clifford, 
werelxjrn  in  New  Hampshire.  They  afterwards 
settled  at  Collins,  Erie  County,  N.  Y.  They  were 
the  parents  of  eleven  children.  Emery,  the  .sev- 
enth of  these,  was  boni  at  Collins,  Erie  County, 
N.  Y..  Octoljer  21,  1832.  In  the  year  1846  his 
parents  removed  from  New  York  and  settled  near 
Salem.  Kenosha  County.  Wis.  His  maternal 
grandparents,  John  Slierman  and  Jane  Orvis; 
Osgood,    were   natives   of   Brookline,   Windham 


County,  Vt.  They  were  the  parents  of  five  chil- 
dren. Mary  Jane,  the  eldest,  was  l»ni  at  Brook- 
line,  Windham  County.  \'t..  November  30,  1838. 
In  the  fall  of  1.S51  they  removed  from  \'ermont. 
settling  on  a  farm  near  Salem.  Kenosha  Counts , 
Wis. 

EmerA-  Clifford  and  .Mar\-  Jane  (Osgood  were 
marrietl  at  Salem,  Kenosha  County,  Wis.,  on 
Februar>-  8.  1856.  They  settled  on  a  farm  near 
Salem,  Wis.,  where  their  four  children  were  born. 
Emery  Clifford  enlisted  in  the  First  Wisconsin 
Heavy  Artiller>-.  Compain  L,  and  was  stationed 
at  Arlington  Heights,  near  Washington,  I).  C, 
guarding  the  United  States  Capital  unlil  the  close 
of  the  civil  war,  after  which  he  returned  and  was 
engaged  in  agricultural  pursuits  until  the  autumn 
of  1S74,  when  he  .sold  his  fann  and  removed  to 
Delmar,  Clinton  County,  Iowa,  where  he  still  re- 
sides. Of  his  four  children.  James  O.  is  the  eld- 
est. Jennie  O.  resides  with  her  parents.  Lurie 
E.  died  unmarried  in  1882:  and  Gay  Enien.-,  the 
youngest,  is  married  and  resides  at  Arthur.  Ida 
County.  Iowa,  where  he  is  the  manager  of  a  lum- 
ber-yard. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  entered  the  public 
( country  1  schools  at  the  age  of  eight  vears.  From 
the  age  of  eleven  he  was  employed  in  assisting  his 
father  with  the  farm  work  during  the  summer,  and 
attending  school  in  the  winter,  until  the  summer 
of  1873.  at  which  time  he  left  home,  going  to 
Delmar,  Clinton  County.  Iowa,  where  he  entered 
the  railway  ser\ice  as  a  messenger  bo\-  and  ap- 
prentice under  his  uncle  by  marriage,  William  E. 
Roberts,  who  was  agent  for  the  Chicago  &  North- 
western Railway  Company  at  that  .station.  Here, 
during  the  following  year  until  October,  he 
learned  telegraphy  and  the  duties  of  a  station 
agent  generally,  and  has  .since  l>een  in  the  eniplov 
of  the  Chicago  &  Noithwesteni  Railway  Company 
consecutively,  as  follows:  October.  1874.  to  Au- 
giLst.  1880.  at  various  stations  on  the  Iowa  Divis- 
ion as  telegraph  operator  and  agent.  In  August, 
1880,  while  he  was  statio:ied  at  Montour,  Iowa, 
he  was  appointed  to  the  position  of  Traveling 
Auditor.  In  this  capacity  he  traveled  over  the 
entire  Northwestern  System.  On  Novemljer  7, 
1887.    he   was   appointed  F'reight  Auditor  of  the 


448 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


Chicago  &  Northwestern  Railway;  Fremont,  Elk- 
horn  &  Missouri  \'alley,  and  vSioux  &  Pacific 
Railroads,  with  office  at  Chicago,  which  position 
he  holds  at  the  present  time.  His  long  continu- 
ance in  this  position,  where  a  thorough  knowl- 
edge of  the  intricacies  of  railway  accounting,  sys- 
tematic supervision,  and  accuracy  in  every  detail, 
are  essential,  attests  his  executive  ability  and 
faithfulness.  His  management  in  bu.sine.ss  affairs 
is  characterized  by  a  progressive  spirit,  seeking 
improved  methods  and  higher  efficiency  in  mat- 
ters pertaining  to  his  chosen  profession.  In  har- 
mony with  this  idea  he  has  been  a  member  of  the 
Association  of  American  Railway  Accounting  Of- 
ficers .since  its  organization,  having  always  taken 
an  active  and  influential  part  in  its  deliberations. 
and  having  been  honored  by  his  fellow-members 
with  the  office  of  Vice-President  of  the  A.ssocia- 

tion. 

On  November  7,  1883,  Mr.  Clifford  married 
Miss  May  Elizabeth  Dannatt,  who  was  born  at 
Low  Moor,  Iowa,  June  2^.  1859,  and  who  is  a 
daughter  of  Benjamin  and  Jane  (Cortis)  Dannatt, 
natives  of  Lincolnshire  and  York.shire,  England, 
respectively.  In  1S51,  her  grandfather,  Samuel 
Dannatt,  came  from  England  and  purchased  five 
thousand  acres  of  land  in  Clinton  County,  Iowa, 
giving  to  the  location  the  name  of  his  old  home  in 
England,  and  to  his  residence  the  name  of  Kill- 
inghome  Hall,  after  his  English  estate.  They 
resided  at  Clinton,  Iowa,  until  October  1885,  at 
which  time  they  removed  to  Wheaton,  111.,  where 
they  now  occupy  a  plea.sant  home  on  Main  Street, 
corner  of  Franklin.  To  them  have  been  given 
five  children.  Grace  Edith  was  born  at  Clinton, 
Iowa,  February  i  1885.  The  other  four  were 
born  at  Wheaton,  DuPage  County,  111. — Lewis 
Dannatt  on  April  17,  1886;  Olive  on  June  8.  1887; 
Marshall  Emery  on  February  26,  1892;  and  Alice 
on  April  8,  1S93.  Mr.  Clifford  has  serv'ed  two 
terms  in  the  City  Council  of  Wheaton  as  repre.sen 
tative  of  the  ward  in  which  he  lives,  having  de- 
clined further  honors  in  this  direction. 

Mr.  Clifford  possesses  a  fine  physique,  and  has 
the  easy,  cordial  bearing  which  makes  and  retains 
friend.ships.  He  is  of  a  social  disposition  and  is 
promiuenth    identified    with   numerous    fraternal 


orders,  among  which  may  be  named  the  Masonic, 
Knights  of  Pythias,  Modern  Woodmen  of  Amer- 
ica and  National  Union.  He  attends  the  Epis- 
copal Church,  in  which  Mrs.  Clifford  is  a  com- 
municant, and  gives  his  political  fealty  to  the  Re- 
publican party.  Mrs.  Clifford  is  a  refined  and 
amiable  lad>-,  who  presides  over  their  ])lea.sant 
home  with  easy  grace,  and  aids  her  husband  in 
making  it  a  hospitable  and  attractive  al)ode. 


-^^+^1 


CSL 


&^ 


3' 


NSON  R.  BALDWIN  owns  and  operates  a 
good  farm  of  one  hundred  acres,  situated  on 
section  10,  Palatine  Township,  Cook  County. 
The  well-tilled  fields  and  neat  apjiearance  of  the 
place  indicate  the  thrift  and  enterprise  of  the 
owner.  The  farm  is  pleasantK-  located  within  a 
mile  of  Palatine,  and  is  one  of  the  model  country 
homes  of  the  conununity.  Its  owner  is  a  prac- 
tical and  jirogressix-e  fanner,  and  by  his  able 
management  his  business  has  been  made  to  yield 
him  a  good  income. 

Mr.  Baldwin  is  a  native  of  New  York.  He  was 
born  in  I'-rie  County,  February  7,  18,^5,  and  is  a 
son  of  John  P.  and  Lydia  (Root)  Baldwin,  the 
former  a  native  of  \'ermont,  and  the  latter  of  New 
Hampshire.  After  their  marriage  the  parents  lo- 
cated in  Erie  County,  N.  V.,  where  the  father 
engaged  in  farming  for  a  number  of  years.  About 
1853  he  emigrated  westward  to  Illinois,  and  spent 
a  \ear  in  DuPage  County.  He  then  came  to 
Cook  County,  locating  in  East  Wheeling,  where 
he  carried  on  farming  for  about  five  years.  On 
the  expiration  of  that  period,  he  purchased  the 
farm  on  which  our  subject  now  resides,  and  be- 
came one  of  the  earh-  settlers  of  this  part  of  Cook 
County.  He  at  once  broke  his  land,  plowed  and 
planted  the  fields  and  opened  up  a  good  farm. 
The  region  round  about  was  almost  an  unbroken 
wilderness,  and  deer,  wolves  and  other  wild 
animals  could  be  seen  in  great  numbers.  The 
family  suffered  all  the  hardships  and  trials  of  pio- 
neer life,  and  also  were  attacked  by  fever  and 
ague,  the  prevailing  illness  during  those  days. 
Mr.  Baldwin  spent  his  last  years  on  the  old  home- 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


449 


stead,  pas-sing  away  in  i88r.  His  wife  was  called 
to  the  home  beyond  in  1890.  and  her  remains 
were  interred  h>  his  in  Palatine  Cemetery,  where 
a  marble  monument  has  been  erected  to  their 
memor\\ 

In  the  Baldwin  family  were  li\e  sons  and  four 
daughters,  all  of  whom  grew  to  mature  years. 
They  are  J.  G..  a  farmer  of  Jessup.  Iowa:  I.  P.. 
deceased;  Anson,  of  this  .sketch:  Charles,  also  of 
Jessup;  George,  deceased;  Cordelia,  wife  of  A.  S. 
Pratt,  of  Palatine:  Elizabeth,  who  has  passed 
away:  Louisa,  widow  of  Jacob  Decker,  of  Cook 
Count>-;  and  Mar>  ,  wife  of  George  Holmes,  of 
Duluth.   Minn. 

A.  R.  Baldwin  came  with  his  parents  to  Illinois 
when  a  lad  of  eight  years,  and  was  reared  to 
manhood  in  Cook  County.  He  obtained  a  good 
education  in  the  common  schools,  and  afterward 
engaged  in  teaching  for  a  year.  The  Union 
found  him  among  its  defenders  during  the  late 
war.  for  in  1862  he  joined  Company  E,  of  the 
One  Hundred  and  Thirteenth  Illinois  Infantr\ . 
and  remained  in  the  ser\ice  until  the  close  of  the 
war.  He  participated  in  a  number  of  important 
engagements,  including  the  battles  of  Arkansas 
Post.  Champion  Hills,  the  Steel  Bayou  raid. 
Raymond,  Jackson.  Black  River,  and  the  siege  of 
X'icksburg.  together  with  others  of  less  impor- 
tance. In  June.  1865.  he  received  an  honorable 
discharge  in  Chicago,   and  returned  to  his  home. 

Mr.  Baldwin  remained  with  his  father,  taking 
charge  of  the  home  farm,  and  after  his  parents' 
death  succeetled  to  the  ownership.  On  tlie  29th 
of  August.  1865,  in  Ottawa  County,  he  wedded 
Miss  Marietta  Castle,  daughter  of  Hiram  and 
Cassandra  ( Sprague  1  Castle.  Her  father  was  a 
native  of  \'ennont.  and.  emigrating  westward,  he 
became  one  of  the  pioneer  settlers  of  Ottawa 
Countv.  Mrs.  Baldwin  was  born  in  the  Empire 
State,  but  was  mostly  reared  and  educated  in 
Michigan.  Before  her  marriage  she  engaged  to 
some  extent  in  teaching.  By  their  union  have 
been  born  four  children,  Ed.son,  Ernest,  Elodie 
and  Emma,  all  of  whom  are  still  at  home.  The 
daughters  are  both  graduates  of  the  High  School, 
and  the  elder  is  a  teacher  of  recognized  ability. 
Mr.  Baldwin  has  long  resided  in  Cook  County, 


and  is  numbered  among  its  early  settlers.  A  well- 
spent  life  has  won  him  the  e.steem  of  all.  Since 
casting  his  first  Presidential  vote  for  Abraham 
Lincoln  in  i860,  he  has  supported  each  Presi- 
dential nominee  of  the  Republican  party,  and  his 
.sons  are  al.so  stalwart  Republicans.  Socially,  he 
is  connected  with  the  Odd  Fellows'  Society,  and 
he  and  his  wife  are  active  and  faithful  members 
of  the  Palatine  Methodist  Episcopal  Church.  For 
about  twenty  years  he  has  sensed  as  a  member  of 
the  School  Board,  and  the  cause  of  education 
finds  in  him  a  wann  friend.  He  was  faithful  to 
his  country  in  her  hour  of  peril,  and  is  alike  true 
in  times  of  p>eace. 


^f^ 


c=_ 


"SJ 


[~RAXK  THOMA,  who  is  engaged  in  the  hotel 
ly  business  in  Des  Plaines.  is  a  native  of  Xas- 
I  ^  sau,  Germany,  boni  on  the  17th  of  Decem- 
ber. 1841.  He  was  only  twelve  years  of  age  when 
he  left  his  native  land  and  crossed  the  Atlantic  to 
America.  He  at  once  made  his  wa\-  to  Cook 
County,  locating  in  Chicago.  He  acquired  his 
education  in  the  schools  of  his  native  land,  and  for 
about  two  months  attended  the  public  .schools  of 
Chicago. 

Mr.  Thoma  was  a  young  man  of  twenty  years 
at  the  time  of  the  breaking  out  of  the  late  war. 
Hardly  had  the  smoke  fron\  Ft.  Sumter's  guns 
cleared  away,  or  the  echoes  ceased  to  reverljerate, 
when  he  entered  the  service.  He  enlisted  April 
16.  1861,  as  a  member  of  the  Union  Cadets,  the 
first  company  that  ever  left  Chicago.  In  Mas-, 
1861,  he  joined  the  Thirteenth  Illinois  Infantr\-, 
the  first  three-years  regiment  from  the  State,  and 
became  First  Sergeant  of  Company  I.  He  was 
afterward  made  Orderly-Sergeant,  and  later  was 
])romoted  to  the  rank  of  First  Lieutenant.  He 
was  wounded  at  Chickasaw  Bayou,  near  \'icks- 
burg,  and  during  his  service  participated  in  the 
battles  of  Chickasaw  Bayou,  the  siege  of  \icks- 
burg.  and  the  engagements  at  Black  River.  Look- 
out Mountain.  Missionary  Ridge  and  Ringgold 
Gap.  He  also  participated  in  the  campaign  through 
southwestern  Missouri,  helping  to  drive  Price  out 


450 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


of  that  State,  and  took  part  in  the  battle  of  Arkan- 
sas Post,  where  his  hfe  was  .saved  by  his  watch, 
which  was  struck  by  a  ball.^  If  it  had  not  been  for 
his  time-piece,  the  ball  would  probably  have 
caused  his  death. 

After  three  years  of  faithful  service,  Mr.  Thonia 
was  mustered  out,  and  returned  home  in  1864. 
He  immediately  afterward  engaged  in  the  butch- 
ering business  for  a  .short  time,  and  then  embarked 
in  the  wholesale  whi,sky  bu.sine.ss.  He  after- 
ward engaged  in  the  retail  liquor  business  in 
Chicago,  there  carrying  on  operations  until  1883, 
which  \  ear  witnessed  his  arrival  in  Des  Plaines, 
since  which  time  he  has  been  engaged  in  the  hotel 
business.  In  the  Ijig  fire  in  Chicago  in  1871,  he 
lo.st  all  of  his  property,  but  has  .since  retrie\ed 
his  lo.st  po.sses.sions. 

Mr.  Thoma  was  married  in  1S64.  and  has  four 
.sons.  He  has  t)een  a  Republican  in  politics  since 
casting  his  first  Presidential  vote  for  Abraliam 
Lincoln.  He  served  as  Trustee  of  Des  Plaines 
from  188.S  until  1891,  and  was  a  member  of  the 
Cook  County  Ceiitrah  Committee  of  tlie  Republi- 
can party  for  three  years.  Socially,  he  is  con- 
nected with  Gen.  Willetfs  Post  Xo.  665,  G.  A.  R., 
of  Chicago;  is  a  member  of  Gladiator  Lodge 
No.  450,  K.  P.:  and  was  the  first  Chancellor  of  Ti- 
tonia  Lodge  No.  97,  K.  P. ,  having  represented  it  in 
the  Grand  Lodge:  he  is  also  a  member  of  Hoffman 
Lodge  No.  353,  I.  O.  O.  F.,  which  he  represented 
in  the  Grand  Lodge  in  1872;  and  has  been  a  mem- 
ber of  the  "  Good  Fellows  "  since  1870. 


-S3 


^+^[ 


_3 


NKXRY  X.  CRABTREE,  of  Barrington.  is 
numbered  among  the  honored  pioneer  set- 
tlers of  Cook  County  of  1837.  He  came 
here  when  Chicago  was  a  mere  hamlet,  and  when 
Cook  County  was  almost  an  unbroken  wilder- 
ness. He  has  watched  with  interest  the  growth 
and  upbuilding  of  the  community,  and  has  ever 
borne  his  part  in  the  .work  of  public  advance- 
ment and  impro\-ement,  therefore  he  well  de- 
serves representation  in  this  volume. 

Mr.    Crabtree  was  born   in   Allegany   County, 


N.  Y.,  May  5,  1816.  and  is  a  son  of  Benjamin 
and  Polly  ( Newman )  Crabtree.  the  former  a  na- 
tive of  Massachusetts,  and  the  latter  of  the  Em- 
pire State.  The  father  was  a  carpenter  and 
joiner  by  trade,  and  in  early  life  followed  that 
pur.suit,  Init  later  devoted  his  time  and  attention 
to  farming.  The  last  years  of  his  life  were  spent 
with  his  son  in  Illinois.  He  was  a  man  who  won 
the  re,spect  of  all  who  knew  him  b\-  a  well-spent 
life. 

Henr\  X.  Crabtree  is  the  onl\-  sur\ivur  in  a 
family  of  eleven  children.  He  grew  to  manhood 
in  his  nati\e  .State,  and  remained  under  the  par- 
ental roof  until  he  had  attained  to  \ears  of  matur- 
it_\ .  The  public  schools  afforded  him  good  edu- 
cational privileges.  In  1837  he  started  westward 
and  took  up  liis  residence  in  McHenr>'  County, 
111.,  locating  a  claim  in  Crystal  Lake  Township, 
near  the  pre.sent  town  of  Cary.  This  conijirised 
one  hundred  and  si.\ty  acres,  which  he  purchased 
when  the  land  came  into  market.  A  comfortable 
log  hou.se  had  been  built,  and  five  acres  had  been 
broken  and  .sowed  in  wheat,  .so  that  food  was  fur- 
nished to  the  family  the  following  year.  Mr. 
Crabtree, with  characteri.stic  energy,  opened  up  the 
farm.  In  1839  he  built  the  first  barn  in  Mc- 
Henry  Coiuity.  Upon  his  farm  his  brother  Ben- 
jamin lived  until  his  death,  in  1847, 

On  the  28th  of  April,  1844.  our  subject  was 
united  in  marriage  in  Lake  County  with  Miss 
Roxanna  Comstock,  who  was  born  in  Vermont, 
June  2,  1S23,  and  when  a  young  lady  of  eighteen 
came  to  Illinois.  .She  is  a  daughter  of  Jared  A. 
Comstock.  one  of  the  early  settlers  of  Lake  Coun- 
ty, of  1841.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Crabtree  had  four 
children,  but  only  one  is  now  living:  Clara,  wife 
of  Dr.  D.  A.  Smith,  of  Mayfair,  by  whom  she 
has  one  son.  Nancy  Jane  became  the  wife  of 
John  F.  Skinner,  of  Barrington,  and  died  Feb- 
niar>  15,  1876,  at  the  age  of  thirty  years;  Nettie 
died  in  Januan,-.  1861,  at  the  age  of  five  years; 
and  Harrison  J.  died  November  17,  1867.  at  the 
age  of  eighteen. 

Mr.  Crabtree  carried  on  his  farm  in  McHenry 
County  for  a  number  of  years,  and  then  sold  out, 
purchasing  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  of  land  in 
Cuba    Township,    which  he   operated    for    se\-en 


K*^  j^^^B 

. 

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■ '^^  ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^H^^H 

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l: 

^^^^^^^^B                                  ^^\^^^^^^^^^H 

Dr.  Leonard  Pratt. 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


453 


years.  He  then  traded  it  for  a  farm  in  Cook 
Count)-,  which  he  carried  on  for  an  equal  length 
of  time.  Oil  the  ex]iirntion  of  that  perifxl,  he  en- 
gaged in  merchandising  in  Dundee,  Kane  Cour.- 
t>',  for  seventeen  years,  after  which  he  sold  out, 
and  in  1S78  he  came  to  Barrington.  For  a 
number  of  years  after  his  arrival  here,  he  car- 
ried on  a  farm  a-half  mile  from  the  village,  but  is 
now  living  retired. 

Mr.  Crabtree  was  formerly  an  old-line  Whig, 
and  cast  his  first  Presidential  vote  for  William 
Henry  Harrison  in  1X40.  Since  the  organization 
of  the  Republican  party,  he  has  supported  each 
of  its  Presidential  nominees,  and  has  been  a  wann 
-  advocate  of  its  principles.  For  twenty  years  he 
has  served  as  a  member  of  the  School  Board,  and 
has  done  much  for  the  ad\-ancement  of  the  cause 
of  education.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Bapti.st 
Church,  and  his  wife  holds  membership  with  the 
Congregational  Church.  Mr.  Crabtree  is  a  highly 
respected  citizen,  posse.s.sed  of  many  excellencies 
of  character,  and  he  and  his  estimable  wife  well 
deserve  the  high  regard  in  which  the>-  are  held 
by  a  large  circle  of  friends  and  acquaintances. 


r^j 


^3 


$^^f 


Ek.  LEONARD  PRATT,  for  many  years  a 
leading  physician  of  Wlieaton,  and  now  a 
resident  of  San  Jose,  Cal.,  is  a  native  of 
Towanda,  Pa.  His  parents.  Russell  and  Olive 
(  Towner  I  Pratt,  whase  names  indicate  English 
ancestry,  passed  their  lives  in  that  place,  where 
Russell  Pratt  carried  on  a  cooperage  business. 
Leonard  Pratt  was  born  December  23,  1819,  and 
is  therefore  now  in  his  seventy-fourth  year,  but  is 
still  vigorous  in  mind  and  body  and  actively  en- 
gaged in  the  practice  of  his  profession.  He  re- 
ceived his  primar}-  education  in  the  Pennsylvania 
common  .schools,  and  his  medical  training  at 
Jefferson  and  Hahnemann  Medical  Colleges  in 
Philadelphia.  For  more  than  fifty  years  his  time 
has  lieen  employed  in  the  healing  art,  the  first 
years  of  his  practice  being  passed  in  his  native 


town.  In  1852  he  removed  to  Carroll  County, 
111.,  .settling  on  a  fann  in  Rock  Creek  Township, 
one  of  the  fine.st  farms  in  that  county.  He  re- 
moved in  1865  to  Wheaton,  111.,  for  the  purpose 
of  educating  his  .son,  a  biography  of  whom  will  be 
found  elsewhere  in  this  volume.  He  built  a  fine 
brick  mansion  on  Main  Street  (now  occupied  by 
Dr.  E.  C.  Guild),  where  his  home  remained  until 
1889.   when  he  removed  to  his  present  residence. 

Dr.  Pratt  is  a  member  of  the  American  Insti- 
tute of  Homeopathy  and  of  the  Illinois  and  Cali- 
fornia State  Associations  of  that  .school,  and  is  a 
man  of  fine  attainments  and  progressive  ideas. 
He  has  always  gi\en  his  political  allegiance  to  the 
Republican  party  since  its  organization.  His  ^ 
religious  faith  is  represented  b\-  the  New  Church, 
commonly  known  as  the  Swedenborgian.  His  time 
has  been  given  to  the  demands  of  a  large  medical 
practice,  and  he  has  been  able  to  devote  but  little 
personal  attention  to  public  affairs,  although  he 
alwajs  took  a  deep  interest  in  any  effort  to  pro- 
mote and  secure  good  government.  The  original 
charter  of  the  town  of  Wheaton,  which  has  since 
become  a  city,  was  the  work  of  his  mind  and  pen. 

Dr.  Pratt  was  for  seven  years  a  member  of  the 
faculty  of  Hahhemann  Medical  College,  of  Chi- 
cago, filling  the  chair  of  Special  Pathology,-  and 
Diagnosis,  and  was  an  extensive  contributor  to 
medical  literature,  being  the  first  Western  ph^-si- 
cian  to  call  the  attention  of  the  profession  to  the 
clinical  thermometer.  At  the  same  time  he  was 
con.stantly  employed  in  attending  patients  in  and 
about  Wheaton  and  Chicago. 

Dr.  Pratt's  wife,  Bet.sy.  is  a  daughter  of  Lemuel 
Belding,  of  Le  Raysville,  Bradford  County.  Pa.,  a 
widely  known  Swedenborgian  clergyman  and 
physician,  who  was  eminently  successful  in  both 
capacities.  He  was  a  calm,  logical  speaker,  and 
achieved  considerable  reputation  as  an  orator. 
The  Belding  famil\-  is  of  English  lineage.  Two 
sons  and  two  daughters  were  born  to  Dr.  and 
Mrs.  Pratt,  one  .son  dying  in  infancy,  and  a 
daughter,  Hattie,  at  the  age  of  thirteen  years, 
the  latter  being  carried  off  by  the  first  case  of 
diphtheria  known  in  Rock  Creek,  Carroll  County, 
111.  One  daughter,  Nettie  L..  is  a  successful 
teacher  of  music  at  San  Jose,  Cal. 


^3 


454 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


r^lERCE  DOWNER  was  numbered  amoiiR  the 
Ly  pioneer  settlers  of  northern  Illinois,  and  was 
yD  the  honored  founder  of  Downer's  Grove. 
The  record  of  his  life  is  inseparably  connected  with 
the  history-  of  this  connnunit>-,  and  this  work 
would  be  incomplete  without  the  sketch  of  one 
who  bore  such  a  prominent  part  in  public  affairs 
in  earlier  vears.  He  was  born  in  Plainfield, 
Windham  County.  Vt..  July  25,  17S2,  and  his 
father,  Elisha  Downer,  was  one  of  the  early  set- 
tlers of  the  Green  Mountain  State.  Pierce  was 
there  reared  to  manhood,  and  was  married  in 
1808  to  Mrs.  Lucy  Ann  Ellis,  widow  of  Stephen 
Ellis,  whose  father  was  Judge  Ellis,  a  leading 
citizen  of  EUisburg,  Mass.  Her  father  was  John 
Wilson,   a    veteran  soldier  of  the    Revolutionary 

War. 

A  lar"-e  famil\-  was   born  unto  Mr.    and    Mrs. 
Downer,   and    wishing  to  provide  for  them  in  a 
better  wav  than  he  believed  possible  in  the  East, 
the   husband  and  father  resolved  to  seek  a  loca- 
tion in  the  We.st.     In    1832  he  left  Rutland,  Vt., 
and  made  his  way  to  Chicago,    there  joining   his 
son  Stephen,    who  was  at  that  time  engaged  in 
constructing  the  first  lighthouse  ever  erected  at 
Chicago.     Mr.  Downer  spent  a  few  days  with  his 
son,  during  which  time   he  made  inquiries  con- 
cerning the  surrounding  country.     At  length  he 
decided  that  DuPage  County  was  the  garden  spot 
of  Illinois,  and  took  up  his  residence  upon  what 
is   now  section    6,    Downer's   Grove   Town.ship. 
He  was  the  first  settler  at  the  Grove,  which  was 
named  in  his  honor,  as  were  also  the   township 
and  village.     In   1833  his  son,  George  Dorance, 
came  to  Downer's  Grove,  but  only  remained  here 
for  two  years,  after  which  he  settled  in  St.  Charles, 
111.      In    October,     1834,     his    daughter    Adehne 
came  West  to  keep  house  for  her  father,  and  was 
the  first  white  woman  to  locate  at  the  Grove.     In 
1836  Mrs.  Downer  and  her  son  Elon  came  around 
the  Lakes,  embarking  at  Sacket's  Harbor  on  a 
schooner  commanded  by  Capt.    Pheatt,  who  was 
well  known  as  one  of  the  most  popular  and  able 
captains  on  the  Lakes.     Such  a  trip  in  1836  was 
con.sidered  as  great  an  undertaking  as  a  trip  now 
around  Cape  Honi. 

Mr.   Downer  was  a    practical  and   progressive 


farmer,  who  kept  well  posted  on  and  made  use  of 
all  improvements  in  farm  machiners'.  It  was  his 
pride  that  his  farm  was  one  of  the  best-tilled  in 
the  State.  His  fences  were  well  kept,  everything 
was  neat  and  orderly,  and  his  .stock  was  in  good 
condition.  His  life  was  a  busy  one,  yet  he  found 
time  to  keep  himself  well  informed  on  all  the 
questions  of  the  day.  During  his  entire  life  he 
was  a  reader  of  the  Congressional  Reco?d.  He  had 
one  of  the  be.st  libraries  in  the  State,  and  many 
hours  were  spent  in  making  the  contents  of  the 
volumes  his  own.  In  all  his  interests  and  work, 
he  found  a  faithful  companion  and  helpmate  in 
his  wife,  and  together  they  traveled  life's  journey 
for  fifty-five  years.  Mrs.  Downer  died  on  the  25th 
of  March,  1863,  and  only  for  a  few  short  hours 
were  thev  separated  by  death,  for  the  following 
dav  Mr.  Downer  passed  away.  They  were  bur- 
ied on  the  old  homestead  on  Friday,  the  27th. 
and  throughout  the  community  their  loss  was 
mourned.  Mr.  Downer  was  ever  found  in  the 
front  rank  of  enterprises  calculated  to  prove  of 
public  benefit,  and  the  county  recognized  in  him 
a  valued  citizen. 

Stephen  E.,  son  of  Pierce  Downer,  and  twin 
brother  of  George,  was  born  September  28,  1809, 
and  in  a  very  early  day  emigrated  to  Chicago. 
In  1837  he  married  Amanda  Tasker,  and  unto 
them  were  born  four  children:  Lucy  Ann,  Ellen 
Amanda,  George  E.  and  Jerome.  Lucy  Aim  be- 
came the  wife  of  Henry  Pierce  Downer,  and  they 
have  two  children,  EUetta  A.  and  Charles  H.  The 
latter  is  manager  of  the  l^iiion  Pubhshing  House, 
of  Chicago,  and  resides  in  Downer's  Grove. 
Ellen  Amanda  is  the  wife  of  Jerome  B.  Hitch- 
cock, and  their  daughter,  Pearl  L.,  is  the  wife 
of  Clay  Bradley,  by  whom  she  has  three  children, 
George  Elsworth,  Nellie  and  Lyle.  George  Evans 
married  Delia  Henry,  who  died  without  issue  in 
1885,  and  the  next  year  he  wedded  Catherine  Es- 
ser,  by  whom  he  has  three  children:  George  Mel- 
ville, born  August  i,  1887;  Pierce  Aubrey,  May 
24,  1889;  and  Delia  Marie,  July  29,  1892. 

Adeline  Downer,  daughter  of  Pierce  Downer, 
was  born  in  Rutland,  N.  Y.,  September  12,  1812. 
James,  the  next  child,  was  born  in  Rutland  June 
10,  1818,  and   there  died    in  July,  1819.     Maria 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL    RECORD. 


455 


\\-as  Itoni  in  Rutland  August  6.  1830,  and  died 
Febn»ar>  1.  iSn.  Klon  E.,  l»rn  Manh  17, 
1827.  niaiTic<l  Ellen  M.  Knox,  daughter  of  John 
Knox.  Several  children  were  txim  to  them, 
but  all  «lie<1  in  youth  sa\e  Addie  M.  and  James 
Pierce.  The  lornier  niarTie<l  Frank  Lindle> ,  of 
Do«niers  Grove.  Superintendent  of  Car  Ser\ice 
on  the  Chicago.  Burlington  M:  (Juincy  Railroad. 
She  died,  leaving  a  tlaughter.  Lucy.  James  P. 
married  Nellie  Archer,  and  has  one  child.  Lillian. 

George  Dorance  I>u\vner.  the  stm  of  the  sub-, 
ject  of  this  sketch,  and  twin  brother  of  Stephen  E.. 
was  boni  in  Rutland.  N.  Y.,  September  28.  1809. 
and  in  I'tica,  N.  V..  was  marrie<l  June  25.  1S36. 
to  Miss  Lucina  Gertrude  Bulkeley.  daughter  of 
Henr>-  Stanley  and  Sallie  1  Durrin  1  Bulkeley.  of 
Fairfield,  Conn.  Mrs.  Downer  trace<l  her  ances- 
try in  this  countr>  back  to  Rev.  Peter  and  Jane 
Ann  Bulkeley,  who  came  to  America  in  1634. 
Henr>  Stanley  Bulkeley.  her  father,  the  son  of 
Jonathan  and  Hannah  1  Hoyt  1  Bulkelev.  was  bom 
March  iS.  1776.  Jonathan,  the  son  of  Peter  and 
Abigail  Bulkeley.  was  b<ini  Septemlxrr  21,  1731. 
He  married  Miss  Hannah  Hoyt.  daughter  of 
James  Hoyt.  of  Nor^valk.  Conn..  June  21.  1762. 
With  this  family  is  associated  an  incident  of  the 
Revolutionary  War  well  worthy  of  mention.  On 
the  7th  of  July.  1776.  Gov.  Tryon  sailed  with  his 
army  from  New  Haven,  and  the  next  morning  . 
di.sem barked  upon  the  l>each  at  Fairfield.  The 
Hes.sians  who  accompanierl  him  were  his  incen- 
diaries, and  to  them  he  intru.sted  the  wielding  of 
the  torch  which  was  to  bum  the  town.  The  peo- 
ple fled.  and.  not  expecting  that  their  homes 
would  be  bumed,  left  most  of  their  furniture  be- 
hind. The  distress  was  con.sequently  very  great. 
Among  the  buildings  saved  was  that  of  Mr. 
Bulkeley.  which  Tryon  made  his  headquarters. 
The  officer  who  had  command  of  the  British  fleet 
was  Mrs.  Bulkeley's  brother,  and  he  requested 
that  Tryon  save  the  house  of  his  sister.  Tryon 
acquiesced,  and  the  house  was  spared,  as  were 
the  two  adjoining  houses,  which  were  so  close  as  to 
render  it  impossible  t<j  bum  them  without  endan- 
gering Mrs.  Bulkeley's  home.  The  three  houses 
are  standing  to  this  day. 

Peter  Bulkeley,  the  father  of  Jonathan,  was  the 


son  of  Joseph  and  Martha   (  Beers  1  Bulkeley.  and 

was  Uim  in  Fairfield.  Coini..  May  21.  1^84.  Jo 
seph  Bulkeley.  son  uf  Thomas  and  Sarah  (Jones 
Bulkeley.  was  bom  in  1644.  Thomas  Bulkeley 
was  the  son  of  Rtrv.  Peter  and  Jane  Ann  Bulkele> 
I  Peter's  first  wift-'  and  w;i>  burn  in  I-'uvlnnl 
April  II.  1617 

Rev.  Peter  Hulkck>.  H.  1)..  was  of  the  first 
generation  of  the  Bulkeley  family  in  America, 
and  was  uf  honorable  and  noble  lineage,  l>eing 
descended  from  Roltert  Bulkeley,  Es<j..  one  of 
the  English  barons,  who,  in  the  reign  of  King 
John,  was  Lord  of  the  manor  of  Bulkeley  in  the 
County  Palatine  of  Chester.  He  was  bom  at 
WiHxl  Hill,  in  Bedfordshire.  January  31,  1583. 
His  father,  the  Rev.  Edward  Bulkeley,  D.  D..  was 
a  faithful  minister  of  the  Gospel,  under  whose 
direction  his  son  received  an  excellent  education 
stiited  to  his  rank.  At  the  age  of  sixteen,  he  was 
admitted  to  St.  John's  College,  of  Cambridge,  of 
which  he  was  afterward  chosen  Fellow,  and  from 
which  he  received  the  degree  of  Bachelor  of  Div- 
inity. He  succee<led  his  father  in  the  ministry 
and  enjoyed  his  rich  lienefice  and  estate.  For 
about  twenty  years  he  was  a  zealous  preacher  of 
Evangelical  truth  in  his  native  town,  but  at  length 
he  met  with  such  success,  and  his  church  was  s<j  in- 
creased, that  complaints  were  entered  against  him 
by  Archbishop  Laud,  and  he  was  silenced  for 
his  nou-confomiity  to  the  requirements  of  the 
English  Church.  This  circumstance  induced  him 
to  emigrate  to  New  ICngland.  where  he  might 
enjoy  liberty  of  conscience. 

To  prevent  detention  Rev.  Mr.  Bulkeley  left 
England  in  disguise  on  the  vessel  "The  Su.san  and 
Ellen."  and  as  a  matter  of  precaution  his  wife 
Grace  and  son  John  embarked  in  another  ship. 
He  arrive<l  in  Cambridge  in  1634.  and  tiecame  a 
leader  of  those  restjlute  men  and  self-denying 
Christians  who  founded  Concord.  Here  he  ex- 
pended most  of  his  estate  for  the  Ix-nefit  of  his 
people.  He  was  remarkable  for  his  benevolence. 
To  his  ser\"ants  who  had  liveil  with  him  for  sev- 
eral years  he  would  give  farms,  and  then  employ 
others  to  be  treated  in  like  manner.  His  merit 
and  affability  drew  around  him  persons  of  all 
ages,    and   his  easy   address,   great  learning  and 


456 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


eminent  pietj-  rendered  his  society-  pleasing  and 
profitable.  He  was  a  thorough  Christian,  and 
his  untiring  labors  and  persuasive  eloquence  made 
him  a  successful  preacher.  He  often  wrote  series 
of  sermons  on  particular  pa.ssages  of  scripture,  and 
one  of  these  books  on  Zachariah  ix:  2  was  pub- 
lished as  -The  first-born  of  New  England,"  and 
pas.sed  through  several  editions,  the  last  bearing  the 
title  'The  Gospel  Covenant,  or,  The  Covenant 
of  Grace  Opened. "  In'it  is  explained:  (  i. )  The 
difference  between  the  covenant  of  grace  and  cov- 
enant of  works.  (2.)  The  different  administra- 
tion of  the  covenant  before  and  since  Christ.  (3. ) 
The  benefits  and  blessings  of  it.  (4.)  The  con- 
ditions.    (  5. )     The  properties  of  it. 

Two  of  Mr.  Bulkeley's  manuscripts  are  pre- 
served in  the  library  of  the  American  Antiquarian 
Societv.  one  of  which  contains  ariswers  to  several 
theftldgfcal  questions,  and  the  other  on  the  char- 
acter and  government  of  the  church.  From  Shat- 
tuck's  History  we  learn  that  Rev.  Mr.  Bulkeley 
was  one  of  the  organizers  and  the  first  pastor  of 
the  church  in  Concord,  Mass. — ^the  first  church 
in  America  to  adopit  the  practice  of  catechi.sing 
children.  Cotton  Matlier  says,  "  This  was  one  of 
the  constant  exercises  of  the  Sabbath.  All  un- 
married people  were  recjuired  to  answer  que.stions, 
after  which  expositions  and  applications  were 
made  by  Mr.  Bulkeley  to  the  whole  congrega- 
tion." 

We  now  return  to  the  history  of  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
George  Dorance  Downer,  and  note  their  children 
as  follows: 

Henr\'  Pierce  was  born  May  15,  ilS^j,  and 
married  Lucy  Ann,  daughter  of  Stephen  Ellis. 

George  Orson,  bom  May  16,  1840,  married 
Jean  M.,  daughter  of  James  Williamson,  and 
unto  them  were  bom  the  following  cliildren: 
George  Bruce,  born  March  24.  1870:  Roy  Ed- 
ward, April  8,  1874:  James  Earl,  April  18,  1876: 
and  Grace  Martha.  September  22,  1878. 

Martha  Lucina.  only  daughter  of  George  D. 
Downer,  born  May  26,  1846,  became  the  wife  of 
Albert  Lee.  of  \'ermont,  and  afterward  married 
Clark  R.  Hunt,  of  Aurora,   111. 

John  Dempster,  born  May  26,  1848,  resides  at 
Downer"  s   Grove.     He  was   married   September 


10.  1884,  to  Rose  L.  Deuel,  by  whom  he  has  three 
children:  Martha  Lucina,  Ixim  Januan-  9,  1886; 
Rose  Ellen,  November  5.  1888;  and  Marie  H., 
September  27,  1890. 

Melville  Bulkeley,  born  Decemljer  26,  1851, 
was  united  in  marriage  May  24,  1882,  with  Miss 
Adelaide  F. .  daughter  of  Robert  Sununers,  who 
was  born  in  England,  and  is  a  son  of  Joseph 
Summers.  They  have  two  children:  Martha 
Adelaide,  born  July  17,1883;  and  Helen  Fitzena, 
JanuaPi-  13,  1887. 

Of  Pierce  Downer's  descendants  at  the  Grove, 
George  E.,  the  son  of  Stephen  E.,  is  engaged  in 
the  house-painting  and  decorating  business. 

Melville  B..  grandson  of  Pierce  and  son  of 
George  Dorance,  is  a  member  of  the  fimi  of  Downer 
&  Markham,  proprietors  of  the  Inion  Publi.shing 
House  of  Chicago. 

John  Downer,  his  brother,  is  a.ssociated  with 
him  in  the  publi.shing  business. 

F'lon.  the  son  of  Pierce,  .still  lives  on  the  old 
homestead  in  the  enjoyment  of  a  well-earned  com- 
petenc\-.  James  Downer,  his  son,  carries  on  the 
farm,  he  and  his  good  wife  assuming  the  cares 
and  burdens  of  life,  while  the  father  and  mother 
are  peacefully  drifting  along  the  shores  of  time  to 
a  happy  old  age. 


^+^ 


CS- 


C=" 


F 


RANKl.lX  J.  CONGLETON,  who  is  con- 
nected with  the  Bush  &  Gerts  Piano  Co.,  of 
Chicago,  was  born  in  Gray  Williams,  near 
St.  Charles,  111.,  on  the  27th  of  June,  1870.  and 
is  a  son  of  James  A.  Congleton.  whose  sketch  ap- 
pears elsewhere  in  this  volume.  The  first  twelve 
years  of  his  life  were  spent  on  the  old  home  farm , 
and  he  then  accompanied  the  family  on  their  re- 
moval to  Wheaton,  where  he  attended  the  public 
schools.  His  primary  education  was  supple- 
mented by  a  course  of  .study  in  Wheaton  Col- 
lege, and  he  also  spent  one  term  in  the  Metropoli- 
tan Business  College  of  Chicago,  which  study 
practically  fitted  him  for  the  duties  of  business 
life.  In  April,  1892,  he  removed  to  Chicago  and 
accepted  a  position  with  the  Bush  &  Gerts  Piano 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


457 


Co.,  witli  wliicli  he  is  still  employed.  He  labors 
earnestly  in  the  interests  of  the  finii.  and  does  a 
Kood  busine.ss  for  them.  That  he  is  tnie  to  the 
trust  repo.sed  in  him  is  indicated  by  his  continu- 
ance in  their  employ. 

On  the  6th  of  April,  1892,  was  celebrated  the 
marriage  of  Mr.  Conjjleton  and  Miss  Nellie  Gates, 
a  daughter  of  R.  \V.  and  Laura  Gates,  residents 
ofWheaton.  The  daughter  was  bom  in  Bloom- 
ingdale  and  is  a  lady  of  culture  and  refinement, 
who  has  many  warm  friends  in  this  community. 
Their  union  has  been  ble.'ised  with  one  child,  a 
daughter,  Lillian  \'.,  who  is  the  light  of  the  par- 
ents' home. 

Both  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Congleton  are  members  of 
the  Belden  Avenue  Baptist  Church,  and  are 
highly  respected  citizens.  In  his  pwlitical  views, 
he  is  a  Republican,  having  supported  that  ]iarty 
since  he  attained  his  majority.  Courteous  and 
genial  in  maimer,  he  is  verA-  popular  and  wins 
friends  wherever  he  goes. 


c=1 


■"S5 


^-^ 


r^  - 


[=" 


QETER  JAMES  McGARRY,  the  .subject  of 
L/^  this  sketch,  is  a  son  of  Henry  and  Mar\- 
^^  (Kerrigan)  McGarry,  both  natives  of  Sligo 
Coimt)-,  Ireland.  They  were  married  in  their 
native  land,  and  two  years  later,  in  1832,  came 
to  America  and  settled  in  Chemung  County, 
N.  Y.,  where  Mr.  McGarry  was  born,  August  17, 
1840.  In  April,  1S44,  Mr.  McGarry  came  with 
his  parents  to  DuPage  County,  where  his  father 
had  purchased  a  farm  in  York  Township.  In 
the  McGarr>-  family  were  nine  children,  five  of 
whom  are  living:  Ellen,  Peter  James.  Francis 
Henry,  Margaret  and  W'illiam.  In  1861  Mr. 
McGarn-  left  the  farm  and  went  to  Chicago, 
and  shortly  after  .secured  employment  with  the 
Chicago  Gas  Light  and  Coke  Company,  and 
continued  in  their  employ  for  twenty-three 
years.  In  1884  he  returned  to  DuPage  Coun- 
ty, and  in  1886  bought  a  farm  at  Utopia, 
which  he  now  owns  and  on  which  he  resided  for 
three  years.  In  1888  he  bought  the  farm  at 
Glen  I^ll>n  on  which  he  now   resides,  and  which 


contains  one  hundred  and  forty-five  acres.  He 
has  improved  it  with  fine  buildings,  and  is  en- 
gaged in  farming  and  .stock-raising. 

On  May  26,  18S0,  Mr.  McGarry  married  Maria, 
a  daughtar  of  Thomas  and  Catherine  Mc 
Donongh.  of  Limerick  City.  Ireland.  In  the 
McDonough  family  were  eight  children,  five  of 
whom  are  living:  Maria;  P.  J.,  of  Loudon,  Eng- 
land; Kate,  widow  of  John  O'Brien,  of  Limerick; 
John,  who  is  in  Brisbane,  Australia;  and  .Marcus 
A.,  in  business  in  Chicago.  Both  of  Mrs.  Mc- 
Garr\'s  parents  are  living  in  Limerick,  but  Mr. 
McGarry's  jiarents  are  dead.  His  father  died  Sep- 
tember 7.  1887,  and  his  mother  September  5, 
1 886.  Mr.  McGarry  aged  seventy-eight  years, 
and  Mrs.  McGarry  seventy-six  years. 

To  Mr.  and  Mrs.  McGarry  have  been  bom  seven 
cliildren,  all  of  whom  are  living:  Helen  F.,  Man-, 
J.,  Francis  IL,  Julia  K.,  Charles  L,  James  Walter 
and  Grace  M.  Mrs.  McGarry  was  bom  in  Lim- 
erick, March  i.  1S55,  and  came  to  America  in 
May,  1872.  They  take  great  interest  in  educat- 
ing tlieir  children,  as  they  wish  to  fit  them  for 
life's  practical  duties.  Both  ]iarents  are  members 
of  the  Roman  Catholic  Church  at  Wheaton. 
Tlieir  Iiome,  one  of  the  best  countr\-  residences  in 
the  county,  is  situated  on  a  sightly  eminence, 
and  commands  a  fine  view  of  the  surrounding 
country.  Mr.  McGarry  has  voted  the  Repub- 
lican ticket,  but  supported  Grover  Cleveland  at 
each  election.  He  is  a  progressive  and  intel- 
ligent citizen,  well  worthy  of  mention  in  this 
record  of  his  adopted  county. 


12-. 


(Tames  IRA  COCHRAN.  dealer  in  grain  and 
I  provisions  in  Chicago,  and  a  resident  of  Lom- 
(2/  bard,  where  since  1S78  he  has  made  his  home, 
claims  New  Hampshire  as  the  State  of  his  na- 
tivity. He  was  born  in  Dublin,  N.  H.,  June  27, 
1846,  and  is  a  son  of  Clark  C.  and  Rebecca 
(  Crombie)  Cochran,  who  were  al.so  natives  of  the 
Granite  State.  The  family  was  of  Scotch  origin, 
and  its  members  were  pioneer  .settlers  of  New 
Hampshire.     The  same  is  true  of  the  Crombie 


458 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


familj-.  Our  subject  was  one  of  three  children; 
Mary  Celestia,  wife  of  O.  W.  Clapp,  of  New  York 
City ;  John  C,  a  commission  merchant  of  Chicago; 
and  James  I.  In  1853,  the  family  emigrated  to 
Lee  Centre,  111.,  where  the  parents  still  reside. 
For  many  years  the  father  was  a  contractor  and 
builder  of  that  place.  He  is  now  eighty-seven 
years  of  age. 

Mr.  Cochran  of  this  .sketch  attended  the  Lee 
Centre  Seminary,  and  Bryant  &  Stratton  Business 
College  of  Chicago.  After  his  graduation,  he  be- 
came book-keeper  in  a  brokerage  and  commission 
house  of  that  city,  and  was  thus  emplQ.ved  until 
1870,  when  he  embarked  in  business  for  himself 
as  a  dealer  in  grain  and  provisions.  To  that 
work  he  still  devotes  his  energies. 

In  August,  1874,  Mr.  Cochran  married  Ella  C. 
Newell,  who  was  born  in  Brattlcboro,  Vt.,  and 
was  a  daughter  of  A.  S.  Newell,  of  Lombard. 
They  had  four  children:  Bertram  Clark,  EIrne.st 
Newell,  Dwight  Ira,  and  Mabel,  who  died  at  the 
age  of  six  years.  The  mother  died  in  Lombard, 
November  15,  1885,  at  the  age  of  thirty-two  years. 
She  was  a  Congregationalist  in  religious  belief, 
and  for  a  time  hell  membership  with  the  New 
England  Congregational  Church  of  Chicago.  On 
the  2d  of  October,  1889,  Mr.  Cochran  was  united 
in  marriage  with  Mrs.  Ainiie  M.  Harris,  of  Chi- 
cago, daughter  of  George  and  Margaret  McKay, 
and  a  native  of  Prince  Edward  Island,  Canada. 
She  had  one  child  by  her  former  marriage,  Helen 
Newell  Harris.  By  the  second  union  there  are 
two  children,  Charlotte  and  Henry  Symonds. 

Mr.  Cochran  has  been  connected  with  the  Chi- 
cago Board  of  Trade  since  1861,  and  has  an  office 
in  the  Royal  Insurance  Building.  He  has  met  with 
excellent  success  in  his  undertakings,  and  has 
thereb},-  acquired  a  handsome  competence.  The 
cause  of  education  finds  in  him  a  warm  friend,  and 
for  six  years  he  has  been  a  member  of  the  Board 
of  Education  of  Lombard.  His  wife  belongs  to 
Prof  Swing's  church  of  Chicago.  In  politics,  he 
is  a  stalwart  Republican,  and  although  he  has 
never  been  an  office-seeker,  he  is  a  warm  advocate 
of  the  party  principles.  Mr.  Cochran  is  liberal- 
minded  and  public-spirited,  courteous  in  manner, 
and  a  man  of  ready  decision  and  marked  business 


ability.  His  home  is  surrounded  by  fine  .shade 
trees  and  ornamental  .shrubbery,  and  the  selection 
and  arrangement  of  the.se  exhibit  rare  taste  and 
judgment  on  the  jiart  of  the  owner. 


""DWIN  HARTLEY  PRATT,  M.  D.,  LL.  D., 
^  only  surving  .sou  of  Dr.  Leonard  Pratt  (see 
__  biography  in  this  work ) ,  was  born  at  To- 
wanda,  Pa.,  on  the  6th  of  November,  1849.  At 
the  age  of  three  years,  in  1852,  he  came  with  his 
parents  t<}  Illinois,  where  he  continued  for  thir- 
teen years  to  reside  in  the  township  of  Rock 
Creek,  Carroll  County.  After  some  preparation 
in  the  di.stricl  schools  of  that  township,  at  the  age 
of  sixteen  he  entered  Mt.  Carroll  Seminary, 
where  he  remained  one  year.  On  the  removal  of 
the  family  to  Wheaton  in  1865,  he  entered  Whea- 
ton  College,  an  institution  somewhat  widely 
known  as  the  seat  of  a  single  idea — .suppression 
of  .secret  societies.  Soon  after  coming  to  Whea- 
ton, Dr.  Leonard  Pratt  joined  the  Independent 
Order  of  Good  Templars,  of  which  the  son  be- 
came also  a  member.  On  learning  this,  the  presi- 
dent of  the  college  insisted  that  young  Pratt  either 
leave  the  college  or  the  lodge.  To  his  credit  be 
it  said,  young  Pratt  was  equally  firm  with  the 
college  authorities  in  maintaining  his  principles, 
and  chose  the  fonner  alternative.  He  then  en- 
tered the  University  of  Chicago,  from  which  he 
graduated  in  the  full  classical  cour.se  in  1871. 
This  institution  subsequently  conferred  upon  him 
the  deeree  of  Doctor  of  Laws,  in  recognition  of 
his  valuable  discoveries. 

Our  subject  now  took  up  the  study  of  medicine 
in  his  father's  office,  and  also  began  attendance 
at  the  Hahnemann  Medical  College  of  Chicago, 
from  which  he  graduated  in  the  .spring  of  1873, 
being  valedictorian  of  his  class.  He  shortly  after 
took  the  chair  of  Anatomy  in  his  a/i>ia  mater,  and 
pursued  at  the  same  time  a  special  study  of  that 
branch  of  medical  science  under  the  tutelage  of 
eastern  colleges.  At  the  end  of  three  years  he 
resigned,  to  take  the  same  position  in  the  Chicago 
Homeopathic  College,  then  just  organized.   From 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


459 


this  he  was  transferred,  at  his  own  request,  seven 
years  later,  to  the  chair  of  Surgery  in  the  same 
college.  This  position  he  filled  for  six  years, 
when,  as  the  result  of  his  own  investigations,  dis- 
coveries and  developments,  the  chair  of  Orificial 
Surger>-  was  created  for  him  in  that  institution. 
and  this  he  has  occupied  to  the  present  time. 

Dr.  Pratt  is  an  original  thinker,  and  has  made 
some  revolutions  in  surgery  as  the  outcome  of  his 
own  investigation  and  practice.  Naturally,  he 
incurred  the  opposition  and  criticism  of  a  large 
portion  of  the  profession,  but  this  he  has  almost 
wholly  overcome  with  his  tongue  and  pen  and  the 
demonstrations  of  the  operating  room.  He  has 
inherited  much  of  the  power  oforator\-  of  his  ma- 
ternal grandfather,  and  is  a  ven,-  forcible,  succinct 
and  convincing  speaker.  These  qualities  have 
given  him  great  power  in  the  class-room,  and  he 
has  sent  out  large  numbers  of  practitioners  who 
are  constantly  spreading  the  fame  and  success  of 
his  discoveries.  With  his  pen.  Dr.  Pratt  is  no 
less  able  and  convincing  than  he  is  as  a  speaker, 
and  it  is  a  brave  man  who  now  attempts  to  con- 
trovert his  theories  or  to  detract  from  his  success 
in  the  healing  art.  He  is  the  founder  and  editor 
of  the  Journal  of  Orificial  Surgery,  a  monthly 
publication  which  is  now  acknowledged  as  stand- 
ard and  widely  quoted  by  other  medical  standards. 
Through  his  influence,  a  magnificent  sanitarium 
has  been  established  on  the  north  side  of  the  city 
of  Chicago,  facing  Lincoln  Park.  This  institu- 
tion was  incorporated  in  1890.  with  Dr.  Pratt  as 
President  and  Surgeon-in-Chief,  and  an  able  corps 
of  assistants,  and  here  his  specialties  in  surgerv  are 
put  in  practical  operation,  to  the  relief  and  cure 
of  thousands  of  sufferers  annually.  This  insti- 
tution is  a  magnificent  six-story  structure,  built 
of  buff  Bedford  stone.  100x120  feet  in  dimension, 
occupying  a  Ijeautiful  site  overlooking  lovely 
Lincoln  Park  and  Lake  Michigan.  Here  is  found 
every  acces.sor\-  of  a  comfortable,  and  even  luxuri- 
ous, home  for  the  invalid.  Dr.  Pratt  is  also  Pro- 
fessor of  Surger>-  and  Mental  Training  in  the 
Lincoln  Park  Training  School  for  Misses,  located 
in  the  same  section  of  the  city.  As  is  made 
apparent  by  the  foregoing,  his  time  is  very 
fully  taken  up.  but  he  is  a  man  of  great  mental 


and  physical  energy,  and  is  fiilly  equal  to  the 
tasks  which  his  ability  and  philanthropy  have 
called  down  upon  him. 

Dr.  Pratt  is  a  member  of  the  .\merican  Insti- 
tute of  Homeopathy  and  of  the  Illinois  State  As- 
sociation of  that  school,  as  well  as  an  honorary 
member  of  many  similar  State  associations.  He 
is  a  member  of  the  surgical  stafif  of  the  Cook 
County  Hospital,  where  his  superior  skill  is  often 
called  into  play.  In  his  religious  and  political 
sentiments,  he  adheres  to  the  precepts  laid  down 
by  his  honored  father. 

In  June.  1877,  Dr.  Pratt  married  Miss  Isadora 
M.  Baile\\  a  native  of  the  State  of  New  York, 
and  a  lady  well  fitted  by  nature  and  cultivation 
as  a  companion  for  her  talented  husband.  A  son 
and  daughter  were  given  to  this  couple,  but  both 
have  been  taken  away,  the  former  in  childhood 
and  the  latter  in  infancy.  In  1893  Dr.  Pratt 
erected  at  Wheaton  a  beautiful  home,  to  which 
he  may  retire  in  summer  from  the  cares  and  bur- 
dens of  his  large  practice  and  other  duties  in  the 
citv  of  Chicago. 


^^^\ 


EHARLES  B.  BLODGETT.  one  of  the  hon- 
ored pioneers  and  retired  fanners  of  DuPage 
County,  now  living  in  Downer's  Grove,  was 
boni  April  16,  1840.  in  the  county  which  is  still 
his  home,  and  is  the  youngest  in  a  faniih-  of  eight 
children,  seven  sons  and  a  daughter.  The  par- 
ents were  Israel  P.  and  Avis  (Dodge )  Blodgett. 
The  father  was  bom  in  Massachusetts,  and  learned 
the  blacksmith's  trade  under  his  father.  He  fol- 
lowed that  pursuit  in  the  East  until  1830,  when, 
with  his  family,  he  came  to  Illinois,  locating  on  a 
claim  where  the  town  of  DuPage  now  stands, 
eight  miles  southwest  of  Downer's  Grove.  He 
there  erected  a  log  house  and  began  working  at 
his  trade,  but  his  labors  were  internipted  by  his 
ser\ice  in  the  Black  Hawk  War.  While  he  was 
ab.sent,  he  left  his  family  at  Ft.  Dearborn,  that 
they  might  not  suffer  violence  at  the  hands  of  the 
red  men.  When  that  struggle  was  over  he  re- 
turned  to  his  claim,    where    he   remained    until 


460 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


1832,  when  he  came  to  DuPage  County.  Here 
he  entered  land,  and  in  connection  with  farming 
also  carried  on  blacksmithing  for  some  time.  Af- 
terward, however,  he  devoted  his  entire  attention 
to  agricultural  pursuits,  and  at  his  death  he  left 
a  large  estate,  his  landed  possessions  being  ex- 
tensive. The  town  of  Downer's  Grove  is  now 
built  on  a  part  of  the  old  homestead.  He  took 
quite  an  active  part  in  politics,  and  was  an  old- 
line  \\'hig.  He  was  much  opposed  to  slaveni-, 
and  helped  many  a  negro  to  gain  his  freedom. 
His  death  occurred  here  in  1861,  at  the  age  of 
sixty-four.  He  came  of  a  family  of  English  ori- 
gin, but  his  ancestors  had  lived  for  several  gen- 
erations in  the  United  States.  His  wife,  a  native 
of  Massachu.setts,  died  in  DuPage  County  at  the 
age  of  eighty-six. 

The  members  of  the  Blodgett  family  were  Henrj- 
W.,  a  prominent  politician  of  Illinois,  now  living 
in  Waukegan:  Israel  A.,  a  retired  fanner  of 
Downer's  Grove:  Mary,  deceased:  Daniel  K. ; 
Asiel,  now  a  railroad  man  residing  in  Waukegan; 
Edward  A.,  who  is  in  the  railroad  employ  and 
makes  his  home  in  Chicago;  and  Wells  H..  a 
prominent  attorney  residing  in  St.  Louis. 

Mr.  Blodgett  of  this  sketch  remained  with  his 
parents  until  their  death.  In  his  youth  he  at- 
tended the  common  schools  and  pursued  his  stud- 
ies in  Wheaton  College  for  .several  terms.  He 
was  married  March  28,  1866,  to  Miss  K^mma  C. 
Brookins,  of  DuPage  County,  daughter  of  David 
and  Ruby  (Smith)  Brookins.  Her  father  was  a 
native  of  Utica,  N.  Y.,  and  on  emigrating  west- 
ward settled  in  Milton  Township,  DuPage  County, 
in  1835,  there  remaining  until  his  death,  which 
occurred  at  the  age  of  eighty  years.  He  was  of 
Scotch  extraction,  and  ser\-ed  in  the  War  of  18 12. 
His  wife  was  boni  in  New  York,  and  died  in  this 
locality  at  the  age  of  eight\-four.  Her  ancestors 
had  lived  for  some  generations  in  America.  In 
the  Brookins  family  were  the  following  children: 
Wooster  S.,  decea.sed;  Jane  E.,  wife  of  A.  Man- 
ley,  a  resident  of  Booue  Count\-,  111.:  E.  C  who 
makes  his  home  in  Denver:  William  S..  who  re- 
sides in  this  county:  Margaret,  wife  of  A.  W. 
Woods,  of Monticello.  Minn.;  Frances,  deceased, 
wife  of  Dr.  E.  H.  Leduc,    of  Los  Angeles,    Cal. : 


Ruby  E.,  widow  of  Dr.  I).  S.  Randall,  of  Wake- 
field. Kan.;  and  Thaddeus,  who  makes  his  home 
in  Wheaton.  Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Blodgett  have 
been  born  four  children:  Harr\-  L. .  who  aids  in 
the  operation  of  the  home  farm;  William  H.,  who 
is  now  attending  college:  David  P.,  a  student  in 
the  Xorthern  Indiana  Normal  School  of  Valpar- 
aiso: and  Charles  B. 

Mr.  Blodgett  is  a  .stanch  Republican  in  his  po- 
litical views,  and  cast  his  finst  vote  for  Abraham 
Lincoln.  He  sened  as  one  of  the  first  X'illage 
Trustees  of  Downer's  Grove,  and  filled  that  oflfice 
for  eighteen  >ears.  He  has  been  a  member  of 
the  vSchool  Board  since  the  spring  of  1S66,  and  is 
now  Assi.stant  Super\-isor  of  his  township.  His 
wife  is  a  member  of  the  Congregational  Church, 
and  he  contributes  liberally  to  its  support.  Mr. 
Blodgett  .still  owns  eight>-  acres  of  the  old  home- 
stead, and  has  a  very  fine  residence.  In  manner, 
he  is  quiet  and  una.ssuming,  but  his  true  worth  is 
recognized  by  his  fellow -townsmen,  who  hold 
him  in  high  re.spect. 


^ 


^ 


^P= 
>^[=^ 


(TOSIAH  T.  READE  was  born  in  Worcester, 
I  Mass., in  1829.  He  is  of  English  Puritan  stock, 
Qj  his  ancestors  having  come  to  this  country 
in  a  veni-  early  day.  His  school  life  began  during 
his  third  year  and  continued  until  he  was  seven- 
teen. He  had  cou.stant  schooling,  for  the  Wor- 
cester tax-payers  meant  to  get  their  money's 
worth  then  and  allowed  the  boys  but  four  weeks 
of  vacation  in  a  year. 

After  leaving  school,  Mr.  Reade  sf>ent  several 
years  in  business  life,  and  then  entered  Amherst 
College,  where  he  was  giaduatedin  1856.  Then, 
coming  West,  he  was  a  teacher  for  several  years, 
his  last  engagement  being  at  Sterling,  111.  In  the 
autumn  of  1864  he  came  to  Lombard  (then  Bab- 
cock's  Grove  1,  having  purchased  the  farm  now 
owned  by  Mr.  Stuewe,  a  mile  east  of  the  village. 
At  this  time  and  until  1S70  he  was  employed  in 
the  city  office  of  the  Chicago  &  Northwestern 
Railway  Company. 

In  1869.  having  sold  the  farm,  he  moved  to  the 


L.    C.    Cl-ARK. 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RKCORD. 


4<'\i 


village  of  Lombard,  where  he  still  resides.  Frt)in 
1870  to  1S73  he  was  a  member  of  a  leading  print- 
ing firm  in  Chicago.  He  has  of  late  years  been 
with  the  great  house  of  A,  II.  Andrews  i*v:  Co.. 
of  Chicago. 

Mr.  Reade  was  an  original  niemlitf  of  the  first 
permanent  church  organization  of  the  village, 
having  commenced  pioneer  work  in  that  direction 
inunediately  on  his  arrival  in  1864.  and  has  al- 
ways stuck  close  to  that  line  of  dut\-.  His  sjiecial 
home  work  of  late  years  has  been  the  establish- 
ment and  improvement  of  the  Free  Library,  a 
generallibrarj- owned  by  the  First  Church,  but 
open  to  all.  Mr.  Reade  was  for  several  },ears  the 
President  of  the  Town  Council  of  the  town  of  Lom- 
bard. He  was  married  in  i860,  to  Miss  Christia 
Murray,  of  Delhi,  N.  Y.,  who  died  in  1868.  His 
children  are  three,  a  son  and  two  daughters. 


I  VMAN  C.  CLARK  is  one  of  the  leading  and 
I C  prominent  business  men  of  Turner,  where 
[_2f  he  has  made  his  home  .since  1870.  During 
the  years  which  have  since  passed,  he  has  con- 
tinuously engaged  in  the  insurance  business.  He 
was  born  June  10,  1833,  in  Darien,  Genesee 
County,  N.  V.,  and  is  a  .son  of  Henry  S.  and  Deb- 
orah R.  (Carpenter)  Clark.  The  ]iaternal  grand- 
father, Joshua  Clark,  was  a  Revolutionary  .soldier 
and  ser\-ed  under  Gens.  Washington  and  Green. 
He  was  a  native  of  Rhode  Island,  and  after  his  re- 
moval to  New  York  he  took  up  several  hundred 
acres  of  land.  Throughout  his  life  he  followed 
farming  as  a  livelihood.  A  prominent  and  influ- 
ential citizen,  he  was  honored  with  the  office 
of  Justice  of  the  Peace  for  over  forty  \ears.  His 
death  occurred  in  the  Enij>ire  vState  at  the  ad- 
vanced age  of  eighty-.seven.  In  his  family  were 
thirteen  children,  twelve  of  whom  grew  to  mature 
years.  The  maternal  grandfather  of  our  subject, 
James  Carpenter,  was  a  native  of  Connecticut,  and 
his  entire  life  was  spent  in  that  State,  where  he 
died  at  an  advanced  age. 

Henry  S.  Clark  was  born   in   Connecticut  and 
became  a  contractor  and  builder  of  New   Y(irk. 


He  also  engaged  in  painting,  and  his  death 
was  the  result  of  his  being  poi.soned  by  paint, 
in  1855,  at  the  age  of  sixty-two  years.  His 
wife,  who  was  born  in  Connecticut,  died  in  the 
Empire  Slate  in  1881,  at  the  age  of  eighty-four. 
Both  were  members  of  the  Baptist  Church,  and 
the  father  was  a  local  preacher  of  that  denomina- 
tion. He  served  as  a  soldier  in  the  War  of  181 2, 
and  his  widow  received  a  pension  on  that  account. 
In  their  family  were  four  sons  and  five  daughters, 
of  whom  the  following  are  now  living:  Henry  H. ; 
Lyman  C;  Lorinda  E.,  wife  of  William  Waldron, 
of  Trenton,  Coini. :  and  Susan  M.,  wife  of  Albert 
Blackman,  of  Erie  County,  N.  Y.  Two  brothers 
lo.st  their  lives  during  the  late  war.  Jerome  was 
killed  at  Bentonville,  N.  C,  and  Dennis  died  at 
home  from  injuries  received  in  the  ser\-ice. 
*  We  now  take  up  the  personal  histor\-  of  our 
subject,  who  was  reared  in  the  State  of  his  nativ- 
ity, and  in  the  common  schools  of  the  neighljor- 
hood  acquired  a  good  English  education.  When 
about  fourteen  \ears  of  age,  he  began  learning 
the  trade  of  carriage-maker,  which  he  followed 
contiiuiously  until  1865.  The  following  year  he 
emigrated  westward  and  took  uji  his  residence  in 
Davenport,  Iowa,  where  he  embarked  in  the  life- 
insurance  business.  In  1870,  he  came  to  Turner, 
where  he  has  since  devoted  his  time  and  energies 
to  the  .same  pursuit  with  good  success. 

On  the  i8tli  t)f  September,  1855,  Mr.  Clark  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Mi.ss  Laura  E.  Babcock, 
daughter  of  Rev.  R.  and  Lucinda  (Gilbert*  Bab- 
cock, the  former  a  native  of  Massachusetts,  and 
the  latter  of  New  York.  Seven  children  have 
been  born  of  this  union,  two  sons  and  five  daugh- 
ters. Altie  Florence  is  the  wife  of  C.  E.  Norris,  of 
Turner,  by  whom  .she  has  four  children:  Charles 
H.,  Carroll  W.,  Ernest  L.  and  Florence.  Clar- 
ence Henry  is  a  twin  brother  of  Altie  Florence. 
Clara  Louise,  Henrietta  and  Charles  Herbert  are 
still  at  home.  Ella  Laura  is  the  wife  of  E.  B. 
Holmes,  of  Turner:  and  Lulu  Pauline  completes 
the  family. 

The  [larcnts  are  both  members  of  the  Method- 
disl  Episcopal  -Church  and  take  a  most  active 
part  in  church  and  benevolent  work.  Mr.  Clark 
has  been  Steward  of  the  chnnli    for  thirtv-seven 


464 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


consecuti\e  >ears.  and  has  also  served  as  Trustee 
and  Class-leader  for  many  \ears.  He  is  now  Su- 
perintendent of  the  Sunday-school,  which  is  mak- 
ing good  progress  under  his  able  management. 
He  has  also  l^een  prominently  identified  with  tem- 
perance work.  In  politics,  he  is  a  Repul)licau. 
and  socially  is  connected  with  Amit\-  Lodge  No. 
472,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.:  Doric  Chapter  No.  166,  R. 
A.  M.:  and  Saloam  Connnandery  No.  54,  of  Oak 
Park.  He  and  his  wife  are  both  members  of  the 
Order  of  the  Eastern  Star.  Mr.  Clark  has  a  good 
home  and  other  town  property  in  Turner,  and  is 
numbered  among  the  valued  and  representative 
citizens  of  this  connuunity.  He  has  hved  an  up- 
right, honorable  life,  and  Iiis  career  is  one  well 
worth\-  of  emulation.  He  has  the  confidence  and 
high  regard  of  all  with  whom  he  has  been  brought 
in  contact,  and  it  is  with  pleasure  that  we  present 
to  our  readers  this  record  of  his  life. 


c=1 


"Si 


^^ 


{S" 


30E  YACKLEV,  a  retired  farmer  residing  in 
Naperville,  is  a  native  of  Germany.     He  was 
born  December  22,  1829,  and  is  a  son  of  John 
Yackle>-,  who  was  also  born  in  the  .same  country. 
The  father  was  a  shoemaker  by  trade  and  also  fol- 
lowed fanning.     He  married  Helen  Staley,  a  na- 
tive of  France,  whose  father   served  in  the  Rev- 
olutionary War  under  Gen.  La  Fayette.    Our  sub- 
ject is  the  eldest  son  and  second  child.     At  the 
age  of  ten  years  he  took  charge  of  his  father's 
business,  and  when  a  youth  of  fourteen   he  came 
to  America,  crossing  the   Atlantic  to   New  York 
City,    and   coming  thence   by    way    of  Albany, 
Rochester,   Buffalo  and  the    Lakes   to    Chicago. 
This  was  in  1S45.     A  few  days  later  he  settled  in 
DuPage    County,   and  purchased  an  eighty -acre 
farm  in  Lisle  Township.      His  first  home  was  a 
log  cabin,  unsupplied  with  a  floor.      He  paid  for 
his  place  $1,000,    paying  the  same   in   five-franc 
pieces,  and  as  he  gave  cash  for  it  he  received  a 
discount  of  seven  per  cent. 

Mr.  Yackle\-  worked  by  the  month  as  a  fann 
hand  for  a  time,  receiving  only  S6  per  month  in 
compensation  for  his  services.     He  was  last  em- 


ployed in  this  way  by  Dr.  Daniels.     The  year  1 850 
saw  him  en  route  for  California  with  a  horse- team, 
for  the  discoverj-  of  gold  attracted  him  to  that  far 
western  land.     He  joined  a  company  of  thirteen 
wagons  which  went  by  way  of  Salt  Lake  City,  and 
at    length    reached   Hangtown,   now   Placen-ille, 
Cal.     Mr.  Yackley  at  once  engaged   in   mining, 
digging  gold  on  the  South  Fork  of  the  American 
River,  where  the  first  discovery   of  the  precious 
metal  was  made.     He  continued  mining  for  four 
vears,  and  then  went  to  Sacramento  City,  where  he 
worked  for  four  mouths  in  a  re.staurant  for  $1 10. 
He  afterward  again  engaged  in  mining  and  made 
consideralile  money.     At  length  he  went  to  Stock- 
ton, where  he  established  a   brewery,  continuing 
its  operation  for  about  a  year.     He  inve.sted  about 
$4, 000  in  that  business,  but  a  fre.shet  carried  away 
his  property,  leaving  him  almost  penniless,    Sub- 
.sequently,  he  took  up  a   claim    a   short    distance 
south  of  Sacramento,  and  later  he  again  engaged 
in  digging  gold,  but  as  dry  weather  came  on  and 
the  water  supply  gave  out,  he   had  to  abandon 
that  work.      He  then  chopped  and   delivered  one 
hundred   cords  of   wood,  for  which    he  received 
$1,000.     Once  more  he  worked   in   a   re.staurant, 
receiving  $2<)<i  per  mouth.      In  the  spring  of  1854 
his  brother  and  some  friends  came  to  Sacramento, 
and  with  them  he  went  on  foot  to  the  mines,  where 
he  continued  until   September,    1854.      He    then 
sold  out  for  Si, 000,  and  returned    to  this  State, 
making  the  journey  by  water. 

Mr.  Yackley  was  married  in  1855  to  Miss  Mag- 
dena  Baumemeister,  who  died  some  years  later. 
They  were  the  parents  of  the  following  children: 
Louise,  widow  of  Otto  Wisbrook;  Matilda,  wife  of 
William  Ory,  of  Lisle  Township;  Edward,  who  is 
'  lix-ing  on  the  old  homestead;  Ida,  wife  of  George 
Keller,  a  farmer  of  Naperville  Townshij):  William, 
a  farmer  of  Milton  Township;  Frank,  a  merchant 
of  Lisle  Township;  Ellen,  wife  of  Pat  Dillon,  of 
Elgin;  Margaret,  wife  of  William  Resser,  of  Chi- 
cago; and  Henrietta,  at  home.  The  lady  who 
now  bears  the  name  of  Mrs.  Yackley  was  former- 
ly Matilda  Weaver. 

After  his  return  from  California,  Mr,  Yackley 
purchased  two  hundred  acres  of  land  in  Milton 
Township  for  $4,000,  and  began  the  improvement 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


465 


of  a  farm,  to  the  further  iic\t'lopiiK-nt  of  which  he 
devoted  his  energies  until  1S8S,  when  lie  removed 
to  Napenille.  where  he  has  since  lived  a  retired 
life.  He  now  owns  three  good  fanns,  all  iu  Milton 
Township,  comprising  two  hundred  acres  each, 
and  has  other  property.  In  his  business  dealings 
he  has  met  with  a  high  degree  of  success  and  is 
now  the  possessor  of  a  handsome  competence.  In 
politics,  he  is  a  stalwart  Rejnihlican.  Living 
(juietly  in  Naperville,  he  now  enjoys  the  rest 
which  he  has  so  truh-  earned  and  richly  deserves. 

'^I.ORGE  MARQUIS  BOGUE.  of  Hinsdale, 
—  dealer  in  real  estate  and  mortgage  loans. 
^  was  born  in  Norfolk.  St.  Lawrence  County. 
X.  v..  Januar>-  21,  1842.  His  paternal  grandfa- 
ther, Samuel  Cook  Bogue,  was  a  native  of  \'er- 
mont,  a  fanner  by  occupation,  and  one  of  the 
heroes  of  the  Revolution.  The  father,  Warren  S. 
Bogue.  was  born  in  \'ernioiit.  and  in  early  life  be- 
came a  merchant  in  northern  New  York.  He 
married  Sallie  Under^vood,  a  native  of  the  Em- 
pire State.  His  death  occurred  in  1869,  at  the 
age  of  sixty-nine  years,  but  his  widow  still  sur- 
vives him  and  is  now  in  her  eighty-second  year. 
Both  were  members  of  the  Presbyterian  Church. 
Their  family  numbered  seven  sons  and  two  daugh- 
ters, of  whom  five  are  now  living:  Dr.  Rosswell 
G.,  a  prominent  physician  and  .surgeon  of  Chi- 
cago; Oswell  A.  and  Hamilton  B.,  also  of  Chi- 
cago; Elias,  who  lives  with  his  brother  in  Hins- 
dale: and  our  subject. 

George  M.  Bogue  spent  the  first  fourteen  >ears 
of  his  life  in  the  county  of  his  nativity,  and  in 
August,  1856,  removed  to  Chicago,  where  he 
joined  his  brother,  Hamilton  B.,  who  had  there 
located  about  four  years  previous.  George  at- 
tended the  public  schools  for  about  a  year,  and 
then  Ix-gan  work  in  the  office  of  the  Merchant 
Dispatch  Fast  Freight  Line,  of  which  company 
his  brother  was  the  Chicago  agent  for  manv 
years.  He  continued  to  work  in  his  brother's 
office  until  April,  1859,  when  he  became  a  stu- 
dent in  the   Cayuga   Lake   Academy,  of  Aurora, 


X.  v..  where  he  continued  for  two  years.  On 
his  return  he  re-entere<l  his  brother's  office,  where 
he  remained  until  June,  1S64,  when  he  formed  a 
connection  with  the  Land  Department  of  the 
Illinois  Central  Railroad,  In  October.  1867,  he 
entered  the  office  of  Ogden,  Sheldon  &  Co.,  the 
oldest  land  agency  in  Chicago,  and  as  his  time 
was  not  wholly  taken  up  by  that  "business,  he  be- 
gan l)usiiie.ss  tor  himself,  looking  after  real-estate 
interests  in  which  he  and  his  brother  Hamilton 
were  jointly  interested.  Since  that  time  he  has 
been  engaged  in  the  real-e.state  business.  From 
1867  until  Januan,-,  1883,  operations  were  car- 
ried on  under  the  name  of  George  M.  Bogue,  but 
in  the  latter  year  the  firm  of  Bogue  &  Hoyt  was 
fonned,  its  members  being  George  M.  and  Hamil- 
ton B.  Bogue  and  Henry  W.  Hoyt.  This  con- 
nection was  continued  until  February  12,  1891, 
when  Mr.  Hoyt  died,  and  the  firm  was  re-organized 
as  Bogue  &  Co..  the  partners  being  George  M. 
and  Haiiiilton  B.  Bogue  and  Harry  \V.  Christian. 
Under  this  name  they  did  business  until  July  i, 
1893,  when  our  subject  retired  from  the  firm. 
Since  that  time  he  has  been  conducting  business 
in  his  own  name,  giving  his  attention  to  general 
real  estate  and  to  tlie  negotiating  and  placing  of 
mortgage  loans. 

Mr.  Bogue  was  married  January  26,  187 1,  to 
Catlierine  M.,  daughter  of  Abrani  B.  and  Lucy  M. 
(Kinney)  \'an  Doren,  the  former  a  native  of  Xew 
York,  and  the  latter  of  New  Jersey.  Six  children 
have  been  born  of  their  union,  but  Gertrude, 
George  and  Margaret  are  now  deceased.  Those 
living  are  Franklin  A.,  Ruth  Yan  Doren  and 
George  Mar(|uis.  The  parents  are  members  of 
the  Presbyterian  Church,  and  Mr.  Bogue  served 
as  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Church  Trustees  of 
the  Hyde  Park  Presbyterian  Church  from  1864 
until  1892.  He  removed  to  Hyde  Park  when 
there  w-ere  only  eight  families  in  that  town,  his 
father  having  there  located  in  1858.  He  con- 
tinued to  make  his  home  there  until  Ajiril,  1888, 
and  witiie.s.sed  and  took  part  in  its  wonderful  de- 
velopment, he  and  his  brother  Hamilton  being 
leaders  in  its  promotion  and  rapiil  advancement. 
He  served  as  Town  Clerk  from  1864  until  1868, 
was  Treasurer  from  1869   until    1872,   and  in  the 


466 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


latter  vear  was  elected  a  member  of  the  Board  ot 
County  Commissioners  of  Cook  County,  to  fill  the 
vacancy  caused  by  the  resignation  of  Hon. 
Charles  Hitchcock.  He  ser\ed  for  two  years, 
during  which  time  he  was  Chairman  of  the  Fi- 
nance Committee,  and  a  member  of  the  Building 
Committee,  very  responsible  positions  at  that  time, 
for  it  was ju,st  after  the  great  fire.  In  1S74,  he  was 
elected  a  member  of  the  Legislature  from  the 
Hyde  Park  district,  and  on  the  completion  of  his 
term  declined  a  re-election.  When  Shelby  M. 
Cullom  was  elected  Governor  of  the  State,  he  ap- 
pointed Mr.  Bogue  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Rail- 
road and  Warehouse  Commissioners.  Our  sub- 
ject served  during  his  entire  time,  and  then  sent 
ill  his  resignation,  in  December,  1882,  but  at  the 
Governor's  solicitation  remained  until  Mr.  Cul- 
lom was  elected  I'nited  States  Senator,  in  March, 
1883.  From  the  organization  of  tlie  Board  of 
Railroad  Commissioners  the  railroads  contested  the 
right  of  the  State  to  exercise  any  control,  tnit 
during  Mr.  Bogue' s  tenu  of  office  amicable  rela- 
tions were  established,  so  that  during  18S1  the 
board  to  which  our  subject  belonged  made  a 
schedule  of  rates  for  both  passenger  and  freight 
traffic,  which  was  accepted  by  ever>-  railroad  cor- 
poration in  the  State. 

In  January,  1883,  Mr.  Bogue  was  unanimously 
elected  Arbitrator  of  the  railroad  jxiols  known  as 
the  Southwestern  Railroad  Traffic  As.sociation,  the 
Northwestern  Traffic  Association,  and  the  Colo- 
rado Traffic  A.ssociation,  which  embraced  all  the 
railroads  running  west,  northwest  and  southwest 
from  Chicago.  He  continued  in  that  position 
until  1885,  when  he  resigned,  in  order  to  give  his 
undivided  attention  to  his  private  busine.ss.  When 
serving  as  Arbitrator,  he  was  called  upon  to  con- 
sider very  important  and  delicate  questions,  his 
decisions  often  involving  millions  of  dollars,  and 
in  no  single  instance  was  his  decision  ever  ap- 
pealed from.  His  services  were  often  requested  for 
outside  arbitration,  such  as  fixing  the  percentage 
for  the  Trans-Continental  Pool  Lines,  and  for  fix- 
ing t'je  rate  at  which  the  railroads  from  Mississippi 
River  points,  points  along  the  east  shore  of  Lake 
Michigan,  and  from  the  northern  pineries  district, 
should  charge  abo\e  or  below  the  Chicago  rate,  as 


the  case  might  be.  He  was  the  arbitrator  in  this 
matter  in  1884.  and  his  rates  have  since  been 
used,  so  that  what  is  known  as  the  "Bogue  Dif- 
ferentials" have  passed  into  railroad  history,  and 
are  the  ba.sing  rates  governing  all  this  business. 

Although  Mr.  Bogue  has  devoted  most  of  his 
time  to  business,  he  has  also  given  much  atten- 
tion to  benevolent  and  charitable  work.  He  has 
sen-ed  as  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Managers  of 
the  Presbyterian  Hospital,  of  Chicago,  from  its 
organization  in  1882,  and  was  its  President  four 
years.  For  some  years  he  was  a  member  of  the 
Board  of  Directors  for  the  Home  for  Incur- 
ables: of  the  Board  of  Directors  of  the  Lake  For- 
est I'niversity,  and  a  member  of  the  Ivxecutive 
Committee  of  the  Presbyterian  League,  of  Chi- 
cago. He  came  to  Hinsdale  in  April,  1888,  and 
has  since  made  this  beautiful  suburban  town  his 
home.  In  reviewing  the  life  of  Mr.  Bogue  we 
see  much  that  is  exemplary.  He  has  been  con- 
nected with  .some  of  the  prominent  arbitration  af- 
fairs of  the  country;  and  has  been  a  leader  in  the 
growth  and  uiibuilding  of  Chicago,  the  mctr<>i)olis 
of  the  West.  While  following  the  strictest  busi- 
ness principles  his  career  has  been  honorable  and 
upright,  and  his  public  and  private  life  are  alike 
above  reproach.  In  the  legitimate  channels  of 
business  he  has  achieved  .success,  and  in  social  and 
business  intercourse  he  has  won  the  esteem  of  all 
with  whom  he  has  been  brought  in  contact. 


-=] 


-^■^'l 


[=~ 


3' 


[OHN  SCHARLAN,  one  of  the  representative 
farmers  of  DuPage  County,  residing  on  sec- 
tion 6,  York  Township,  was  born  in  Prussia, 
Germany,  April  4,  1845,  and  is  the  eldest  of  a 
family  of  five  children,  whose  parents  were  David 
and  Sophia  Scharlan.  The  father  was  born  in 
Prus.sia,  and  was  a  farmer  by  occupation.  In  the 
fall  of  1855  he  left  his  native  land,  and  accom- 
panied by  his  family  emigrated  to  the  New  World. 
After  a  voyage  of  se\-en  weeks,  the  vessel  in  which 
he  sailed  dropped  anchor  in  the  harbor  of  New 
York,  and  from  that  city  he  made  his  way  to 
Chicago,    where   he    remained  for  four    months. 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


4^^? 


He  then  came  to  York  Township,  DuPage  Coun- 
ty, where  he  rented  land  until  1863,  when  he 
purchased  an  eighty-acre  tract,  making  his  home 
thereon  until  his  death,  which  occurred  at  the  age 
of  seventy-two  years.  In  his  political  views,  he 
was  a  Republican,  and  was  a  member  of  the 
Lutheran  Church.  Both  he  and  his  wife  lie  buried 
in  York  Center  Cemetery. 

John  Scharlan  was  a  lad  of  only  ten  summers 
when  he  left  the  Fatherland  and  came  with  his 
parents  to  the  New  World.  He  has  since  lived 
in  DuPage  County.  Here  he  was  reared,  and  in 
the  countn,-  schools  acquired  his  education.  In 
December.  1863.  at  the  age  of  eighteen,  he  re- 
sponded to  the  call  of  his  adopted  country  for 
troops,  and  enli.sted  in  the  Seventeenth  Illinois 
Cavalry,  in  which  he  served  until  the  clo.se  of  the 
war.  He  participated  in  the  Price  raid  in  Mis- 
souri, and  in  his  serxice  met  with  many  narrow 
escapes,  for  he  was  largely  engaged  in  bushwhack- 
ing, which  in  some  respects  was  far  more  danger- 
ous than  open  battle.  When  the  war  was  over 
he  received  an  honorable  discharge  in  Springfield. 
111.,  in  December,  1865. 

Our  subject  then  returned  to  DuPage  County, 
and  worked  upon  the  home  farm  of  his  father  un- 
til December,  1874,  when  he  was  united  in  mar- 
riage with  Miss  Louisa  Theis.  of  Lake  County. 
Seven  children  have  been  born  unto  them,  of 
whom  two  died  in  infancy.  Those  still  living 
are  Carrie,  Martha.  Tillie,  Annie  and  Bertha,  all 
of  whom  are  still  with  their  parents. 

Mr.  Scharlan  votes  with  the  Republican  party, 
and  is  a  warm  advocate  of  its  principles.  He  has 
served  as  Ta.v  Collector  for  two  terms,  and  is  now 
School  Director  of  his  district.  He  belongs  to 
E.  S.  Kelley  Po.^t  No.  513.  G.  A.  R.  of  Wheaton, 
and  he  and  his  family  are  members  of  the  Luther- 
an Church.  Mr.  Scharlan  is  now  the  owner  of  a 
valuable  fann  of  eighty  acres,  which  is  ven- 
highly  improved.  Upon  it  is  a  good  residence, 
which  was  erected  at  a  cost  of  $2,400,  and  a  fine 
bam,  valued  at  $1,000.  This  place  is  as  a  mon- 
ument to  his  thrift  and  enterprise.  He  started 
out  in  life  empty-handed,  but  by  industry  and 
detennination  overcame  the  obstacles  in  his  path 
and  steadily  worked  his  wa\-  upward  to  success. 


He  is  an  honest  and  valued  German- American 
citizen,  who  was  true  to  his  adopted  country  in 
her  hour  of  peril,  and  is  alike  faithful  to  his  duties 
in  days  of  peace. 


-S) 


^^^ 


c=_ 


Hi:XRY  H.  MARTIN,  a  farmer  and  dain, - 
man  residing  in  Winfield  Township,  Du- 
Page County,  is  a  native  of  the  Empire 
State.  He  was  bom  near  Buffalo,  in  Erie  County, 
N.  Y..  June  15,  1848,  and  is  a  son  of  Christian 
F.  and  Sarah  (  Rhodes  >  Martin,  both  of  whom 
were  natives  of  Peiuisylvania,  and  were  of  Ger- 
man descent.  They  had  a  family  of  eight  chil- 
dren, three  sons  and  five  daughters,  namely: 
Annie,  wife  of  Adam  Glass,  a  general  merchant 
of  Wayne,  IH.:  David,  a  farmer  and  stock-raiser 
of  Winfield  Township:  Sarah,  wife  of  Har\ey 
Barkdale,  a  farmer  of  Warren ville:  Henry  H.  of 
this  sketch:  Daniel,  a  dealer  in  agricultural  imple- 
ments in  Turner:  Leo.  wife  of  Judson  Fairbanks, 
a  farmer  of  Winfield  Township:  Lydia,  wife  of 
Allen  Fairbanks,  Count\-  Treasurer  of  DuPage 
County,  and  a  resident  of  Turner:  and  Hattie, 
wife  of  L.  Fr\-,  who  is  li\-ing  near  Naper\-ille. 

The  father  of  this  family  has  followed  farming 
throughout  his  entire  life.  He  acquired  a  goo<l 
common-school  education,  and  lived  in  the  Em- 
pire State  until  his  emigration  to^Illinois  in  1849. 
He  then  purchased  a  farm  in  Kane  County,  and 
made  his  home  thereon  until  1S65,  when  he  sold 
out  and  came  to  DuPage  County,  where  he  pur- 
chased land  in  Winfield  Township,  one  mile  south 
of  Turner.  He  then  gave  his  attention  to  agri- 
cultural pursuits  until  18S3.  when  he  came  to 
Naper\Mlle.  where  he  is  now  living  a  retired  life, 
at  the  age  of  seventy-nine.  He  started  out  in 
life  for  himself  empty-handed,  but  has  steadily 
worketl  his  way  upward  and  has  acquired 
a  comfortable  competence  as  the  "result  of  his 
labors.  In  politics,  he  i.s  a  Republican,  and  in 
religious  Ijelief  is  a  Dunkard.  His  wife  lielonged 
to  the  same  church.  She  departed  this  life  on 
the  i6th  of  Septeni'ier.  i8,s'i,  and  her  remains 
were  interred  in  Oak  Wootl  Cemeterv.  of  Turner. 


468 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


It  was  dviring  his  infancy  that  Mr.  Martin  of 
this  .sketch  was  brought  by  his  parents  to  the 
West.  He  was  reared  to  manhood  in  Kane  County 
and  attended  its  pubHc  .schools,  acquiring  a  good 
busine.ss  education.  With  his  father  and  mother 
he  came  to  DuPage  County,  and  Hved  with  them 
until  after  he  had  arrived  at  mature  years,  when 
he  began  Hfe  for  himself  He  removed  to  the  farm 
on  which  he  now  makes  his  home,  comprising 
eighty-.six  and  a-half  acres  of  rich  land,  located 
just  outside  of  the  city  limits.  Here  he  .success- 
fully carries  on  general  farming  in  connection 
with  the  dairy  business. 

On  Christmas  Day  of  1S72  Mr.  Martin  married 
Miss  Clara  A.,  daughter  of  G.  L.  and  Martha 
(Rexford)  Hodges.  Her  father  was  a  native  of 
Pennsylvania.  Her  mother  was  born  in  the  lun- 
pire  State  and  was  of  English  descent.  Mrs. 
Martin  was  born  in  the  Key.stone  State,  and  by 
her  marriage  has  become  the  mother  of  the  fol- 
lowing children:  Elmer  E.,  George  G.,  Florence 
P.,  and  Stella  J.,  who  died  in    1879. 

Mr.  Martin  votes  with  the  Republican  part>- 
and  takes  quite  an  active  interest  in  ]wlitics.  He 
has  served  his  township  as  Commissioner  and 
proved  a  capable  officer.  .Socially,  he  is  con- 
nected with  the  Odd  Fellows'  lodge.  Those  who 
know  him  esteem  him  highly  for  his  .sterling 
worth  and  integrity,  and  he  is  lunnbered  among 
the  leading  farmers  of  DuPage  Countv. 

b  ^'  T  "^  &^  ~S 

'HOMAS  EDIE  HILL  was  born  in  Sand- 
gate,  Bennington  County,  \'t.,  February  29, 
1832.  He  was  reared  on  his  father's  farm, 
attending  in  the  winter  the  district  schools  of 
that  vicinity,  and  finishing  his  .school  instriction 
at  the  Cambridge  Academy,  at  Cambridge,  N.  V. 
Possessing  natural  aptitude  for  teaching,  Mr. 
Hill  entered  iipon  that  work,  and  taught  his  first 
.school  at  Eagleville,  East  Salem,  N.  Y.,  recei\-- 
ing  therefor  $10  per  month;  following  which, 
at  the  age  of  nineteen,  he  taught  the  winter  school 
in  Londonderry,  Vt. ,  receiving  $14  per  month 
and  "boarding 'round."  Fitting  himself  in  Boston 


for  teaching  penmanship,  he  entered  upon  the 
work  of  conducting  evening  schools,  teaching 
penmanship  and  forms,  and  followed  that  profes- 
sion during  the  fifteen  succeeding  years,  the  field 
of  his  teaching  being  in  \'ermont,  New  York, 
Ohio,  Wisconsin  and  Illinois.  He  left  this  work 
in  1866,  and  has  taught  none  since,  except  a 
school  in  parliamentary  practice,  which  ( being 
deeph'  impres.sed  with  the  importance  of  such  a 
school)  he  opened  at  the  Chicago  Athenienm  in 
1 89 1,  conducting  the  same  for  several  months  and 
closing  with  a  public  exhibition.  This  class  was 
the  first  of  its  kind,  up  to  the  time  when  it  was 
establi.shed. 

Settling  at  Waukegan,  111.,  in  iSs4  with  his 
wife,  formerly  Miss  Rebekah  J.  Pit-rce,  of  Lon- 
donderrx  ,  \'t.,  by  whom  he  had  one  child,  Flor- 
ence G.,  at  pre.sent  Mrs.  George  M.  Porteous,  he 
remained  there  until  1866,  when  he  located  at 
Aurora.  111.,  and  began  the  publication  of  the 
.  Aurora  I Ifiald,  from  which  he  severed  his  con- 
nection a  few  years  afterward.  He  continued  his 
residence  in  that  cit\-  for  twelve  years,  during 
which  time  he  founded  and  obtained  a  large  circu- 
lation for  the  Herald.  He  als(j  established  the 
Suburban  Chicago  Purchasing  Agency  busi- 
ness, and  as  manager  for  a  time  of  the  Aurora 
Silver  Plate  factory,  placed  that  institution  upon  a 
successful  basis.  While  Mayor  of  Aurora,  in  187I5 
and  1877,  he  introduced  various  improvements  in- 
to the  city,  among  them  being  the  suppression  of 
cows  from  running  at  large,  the  .setting  out  of  thou- 
sands of  .shade  trees,  the  taking  down  of  fences 
around  dwellings,  and  the  organizing  of  an  im- 
provement society,  which  .since  that  time  has 
been  largely  instrumental  in  making  that  cit\  the 
metropolis  of  the  Fox  River  Valley. 

('riving  a  liberal  portion  of  the  property  which 
he  had  accumulated  up  to  that  time  (  1878)  to  his 
wife,  she  secured  a  separation  from  him  by  mutual 
consent,  he  taking  up  his  residence  in  Chicago  to 
give  personal  supervision  to  the  management  of 
"Hill's  Manual  of  Social  and  Business  Forms," 
which  had  been  brought  out  by  Moses  Warren,  a 
publisher  of  Chicago,  in  1873,  Mr.  Hill  assuming 
the  publishing  of  it  in  1879.  Subsequently  mar- 
rying Mrs.    Ellen    M.    Whitconib,    at    vShushan, 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL    RECORD. 


469 


X.  v.,  he  continued  his  residence  in  Chicago  un- 
til 1883,  at  which  time  he  purchased  a  fami  ad- 
joining the  village  of  Prospect  Park,  DuPage 
County.  111.  In  the  .succeeding  year  he  settled 
thereon,  returning  thus  to  the  employment  with 
which  he  had  been  familiar  in  his  boyhood.  His 
retuni  to  farming  was  volu!ilar>-  and  not  of  neces- 
sity, a  phrenologist  on  one  occa.sion,  when  ex- 
amining his  head,  having  told  him  when  he  began 
his  teaching  that  he  would  succeed  in  anything 
that  he  undertook. 

With  large  natural  love  of  the  ornamental  in 
landscape  and  building,  he  became  the  publisher 
and  editor,  in  1884.  of  the. Chicago  A'atioiia/ 
/iui/der,  in  which  he  gave  to  the  world  man>- 
beautiful  designs  of  buildings  and  ornamental 
grounds.  Retiring  from  this  publication  after 
making  it  the  best  magazine  of  its  cla.ss,  he  or- 
ganized a  land  syndicate  at  Prospect  Park,  en- 
abled several  of  the  old  farmers  of  that  \icinit>- 
to  sell  their  farms  so  well  as  to  retire  on  a 
competency,  changed  the  name  of  the  village  to 
Glen  Ellyn.  and  securetl  the  making  of  the  charm- 
ing little  Lake  Glen  Ellyn.  the  construction  of  an 
elegant  hotel  upon  its  borders,  and  the  develop- 
ment of  several  springs  near  the  lake,  among 
them  being  the  famous  Glen  Ellyn  Apollo,  the 
waters  of  which  have  large  sale  in  Chicago. 

Among  Mr.  Hill's  literar\-  works  have  Ixjen 
several  books  of  large  circulation,  of  which  "Hill's 
Manual"  has  had  a  sale  of  about  four  hundred 
thousand  copies  at  tliis  writing,  at  an  average 
price  of  §6  per  copy:  "Hill's  Album  of  Biogra- 
phy," having  a  circulation  of  eight>-  thousand 
copies:  "Hill's  Guide  to  Chicago:"  "Ways  of 
Cruelty."  an  illustrated  pamphlet  used  in  great 
numljers  by  humane  societies:  "Right  and  Wrong 
Contra.sted:"  and  "Money  Found."  the  latter  a 
popular  book  on  the  subject  of  finance. 

This  latest  work  is  an  original  publication, 
which  fully  outlines  the  plan  by  which  the  Gov- 
ernment may  assume  the  ownership  of  banks, 
and  ma>'  oj>erate  them  at  all  central  points,  guaran- 
teeing depositors  against  loss,  preventing  finan- 
cial panics,  and  the  con.sequent  depressions  in  busi- 
ness. Mr.  Hill  is  tlit-  first  jx^rson  to  put  forth  to 
the  world  a  practical  method   by   which   Govern- 


mental banking  may  be  established.  .\i  this 
writing,  the  took,  "Mnne_\  Found.  "  is  having  an 
immensely  large  .sale,  with  a  fair  probability  of 
so  etlucating  the  people  as  to  cau.se  them  to  de- 
mand Government  ownership  of  banks  in  the  very 
near  future,  thus  revolutionizing  the  present  in- 
.secure  sy.stem  of  banking,  giving  the  profits  per- 
taining to  the  handling  of  the  people's  money  to 
the  people;  and  at  the  .same  time  securing  relief 
from  bank  failures,  and  permanent  financial  pros- 
perity  for  all. 

While  Mr.  Hill's  efforts  have  been  crowned 
with  success  for  himself,  his  labors  have  been 
largely  of  a  public  character,  and  Irave  resulted 
in  great  educational  benefit  to  the  people  in  all 
parts  of  the  country.  Though  a  quiet  resident  of 
Glen  Ellyn.  his  works  have  had  such  large  circu- 
lation as  to  make  his  name  much  more  familiar  to 
the  inhabitants  of  New  England,  the  Middle 
States  and  the  Pacific  Coa.st  than  it  is  to  the  people 
of  DuPage  County. 


-=] 


^-^ 


r^^i 


ri  B.  BOECKER,  the  efficient  and  popular 
jC^  Mayor  of  ,Naper\'ille.  is  a  native  of  Prussia, 
d/  Gennany.  his  birth  having  there  occurred 
on  the  3d  of  February,  1840.  He  spent  the  davs 
of  his  boyhood  and  youth  in  that  land,  and  no 
event  of  special  importance  (Kxurred  during  his 
earlier  years.  At  the  age  of  nineteen  he  joined 
the  German  army  as  a  volunteer,  and  served  one 
year.  He  was  a  young  man  of  twenty  vears 
when,  in  i860,  he  cro.ssed  the  broad  Atlantic  to 
America  and  took  up  his  residence  in  Naperville. 
He  turned  his  attention  to  fanning,  which  pursuit 
he  followed  continuously  for  fi)ur  years,  when,  in 
1864.  he  returned  to  Gennany.  There  he  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Anna  Ohm,  al.so  a  nati\  e 
of  Prus.sia. 

Soon  after  his  marriage,  Mr.  Boecker  brought 
his  wife  to  the  New  World  and  a.gain  took  up  his 
residence  in  DuPage  Countx .  where  he  carried 
on  agricultural  pursuits  for  three  years.  In  1868 
he  removed  to  Naperville.  where  he  engaged  in 
the  lunilKT  business  and   also   dealt    in    pressed 


470 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


hay.  To  that  work  he  devoted  his  energies  for 
some  time,  but  in  1880  sold  out  and  purchased  a 
grain  elevator  and  coal-yard  at  the  depot,  where 
he  still  continues  business.  This  has  proved  a 
profitable  investment  and  yields  to  the  proprietor 
a  good  income.  In  1882  Mr.  Boecker  was  instru- 
mental in  forming  the  Naper\ille  Stone  Company, 
of  which  he  is  President.  His  business  interests 
have  not  onl\-  benefited  himself  but  have  aided 
materially  in  the  advancement  of  the  general  wel- 
fare. The  stone  company  also  has  a  liberal  pa- 
tronage and  makes  shipments  both  to  the  East 
and  the  West. 

I'nto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Boecker  were  born  three 
children,  two  sons  and  a  daughter:  Theo  T.. 
now  of  Xaperville:  Adolphine,  wife  of  William 
Koch,  a  cigar  manufacturer:  and  Arnold,  also  of 
Xapenille.  Mr.  Boecker  has  been  a  second  time 
married.  His  present  wife  bore  the  maiden  name 
of  Emily  Hammerschmidt.  They  have  bne  son 
and  two  daughters:  Gertrude,  Erna  and  Bernard. 

In  his  political  views.  Mr.  Boecker  is  a  stalwart 
Democrat,  who  takes  a  warm  interest  in  the  growth 
and  success  of  his  party.  He  has  been  honored 
with  some  public  offices,  including  that  of  Alder- 
man, in  which  he  served  for  .several  years.  In 
1874  he  was  elected  Mayor  of  Xaperville.  and  in 
1892  was  again  chosen  to  that  office,  which  i>osi- 
tion  he  now  fills.  For  two  years  he  was  Super- 
visor of  Lisle  Township,  and  is  now  President  of 
the  Building  and  Loan  As.sociation.  He  is  also 
a  member  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America, 
and  has  held  office  in  the  local  lodge.  He  is  a 
man  of  excellent  bu.siness  ability,  sagacious  and 
far-sighted,  and  by  his  well-directed  efforts  he  has 
achieved  a  success  of  which  he  may  justly  be 
proud.  He  is  a  genial,  pleasant  and  popular 
gentleman  and  is  well  ranked  among  the  \alued 
citizens  of  this  community. 

g<H'~^[S~^        a 

■ROMAS  W.    LEAHE,   a  practical  and  pro- 
gressive farmer  living  on  section  21,  Wayne 
Township,    DuPage  Comity,   was  born   on 
the  farm  which  is  still  his  home,   September  25, 


1851,  and  is  a  son  of  Ran.som  H.  Leahe,  who  was 
born  in  Dutchess  County,  X.  V.,  in  1820.  There 
he  was  reared  to  manhood  and  wedded  Marx- 
Ann  Gorham.  In  1847  he  emigrated  westward 
and  took  up  his  residence  in  DuPage  County, 
where  he  purchased  a  farm,  the  same  on  which 
our  subject  now  resides.  His  labors  transformed 
the  tract  into  rich  and  productive  fields  and  made 
of  the  place  one  of  the  be.st  farms  of  the  commu- 
nity. In  1875  Mr.  Leahe  removed  to  St.  Charles, 
where  he  spent  the  last  years  of  his  life  in  retire- 
meut.  his  death  txrcurring  on  the  30th  of  May, 
1893.  His  wife  still  sunives  him  and  yet  makes 
her  home  in  St.  Charles.  In  the  family  were 
only  two  children. 

Thomas  W.  Leahe  grew  to  manhood  on  the 
old  homestead  and  became  familiar  with  the  duties 
of  farm  life.  He  began  his  education  in  the  com- 
mon schools,  but  afterward  pursued  his  studfes 
for  three  years  in  Wheaton  College.  He  thus  ac- 
quired a  good  business  education  and  only  needed 
its  application  to  real  life  to  make  him  a  success- 
ful business  man. 

On  the  tjth  of  December,  1875,  in  Wayne 
Township,  our  subject  was  united  in  marriage 
with  Mi.ss  Elmira  L.,  daughter  of  J.  K.  Gorham. 
one  of  the  honored  pioneers  of  DuPage  County, 
who  at  a  ver>-  early  da>  cast  in  his  lot  with  the 
early  settlers  of  thisconnnunity.  He  now  resides 
in  St.  Charles,  where  he  is  living  a  retired  life. 
The  young  couple  began  their  domestic  life  upon 
the  old  Leahe  homestead,  and  our  subject  there 
continued  to  actively  engage  iji  agricultural  pur- 
suits until  the  spring  of  1S91,  when  he  rented 
his  farm,  and  remorirfg  to  St.  Charles  purchased 
a  half-interest  in  an  established  hardware  busi- 
ness, in  connection  with  his  brother-in-law. 
There  he  engaged  in  merchandising  until  the 
spring  of  1893,  when  he  returned  to  the  old  home, 
although  he  still  retains  his  interest  in  the  store. 
The  firm  receives  a  liberal  ])atronage  and  enjoj-s 
a  good  trade. 

Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Leahe  have  been  born  two 
children.  Bertram  and  Myrtle.  The  parents  are 
prominent  people  in  the  community,  and  hold  an 
enviable  position  in  social  circles.  Since  becom- 
ing a  voter,    Mr.    Leahe  has  supported  the  men 


Bkxx  Philips  Reynolds,  A.  M.,  M.  D. 


rORTRAlT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


473 


and  measures  of  the  Democratic  part>-.  He  has 
never  been  an  aspirant  for  official  honors,  but  was 
elected  .\ldennan  of  St.  Charles.  He  has  for 
some  time  Ixren  a  member  of  the  Odil  Fellows' 
lodge  of  St.  Charles.  His  long  residence  in  this 
community  has  made  him  widely  and  favorably 
known,  and  an  upright  and  honorable  life  has 
gained  for  him  the  confidence  and  high  regard  of 
all  with  whom  business  or  .social  relations  have 
brought  him  in  contact. 

i  ^  ^-^  T^&^ a 

gEXX  PHILIPS  REYNOLDS.  A.  M.,  M.  D. 
Of  the  many  prominent  residents  of  Lom- 
tiard.  doing  business  in  Chicago,  who  claim 
the  British  Isles  as  the  country  of  their  nativity, 
there  are  few,  perhaps,  of  greater  relative  promi- 
nence, or  more  respected  for  unostentatious  acts  of 
charity,  than  Dr.  B.  P.  Reynolds.  In  appearance 
he  is  a  .striking  figure,  six  feet  in  height,  weigh- 
ing about  two  hundred  and  thirty  pounds.  Well 
propKJrtioned.  and  with  markedl\-  intellectual  feat- 
ures, he  immediately  attracts  attention  in  a  crowd. 
He  is  a  whole-souled  gentleman,  whose  kindness 
of  heart  and  man>-  charitable  deeds  have  endeared 
him  to  all  acquainted  therewith,  and  those  who 
be.stknow  him  most  highly  re.spect  and  trust  him. 
Dr.  Reynolds  is  a  native  of  Wales  and  a  thor- 
ough Welshman.  He  was  bom  in  South  Wales, 
Great  Britain,  December  14,  1832,  and  is  the  eld- 
est of  six  sons  and  two  daughters  of  David  Rey- 
nolds, a  prominent  business  man  of  his  native 
town,  being  a  woolen  manufacturer,  etc.  He 
was  a  devoted  Christian  and  an  earnest  worker  in 
the  church,  and  was  full  of  benevolent  and  char- 
itable deeds  toward  his  fellow-man.  The  mother 
of  the  Doctor,  Sarah  (Davies)  Reynolds,  was,  on 
account  of  the  death  of  her  mother,  brought  up  and 
educated  by  her  grandfather,  a  prominent  clergy- 
man, and  therefore  had  superior  advantages.  She 
was  a  grand  and  noble  woman,  and  reared  her 
children  in  such  a  way  that  they  caused  to  be 
place<l  on  her  monument  the  following  epitaph: 

•■  Her  children  rise  up  and  call  her  blessed; 
Her  husband  also,  and  he  praiseth  her." 


Her  memor>-  will  alwa>s  remain  hallowed,  grow- 
ing more  tender  and  fragrant  as  the  years  go 
by.  She  is  ever  present  in  spirit,  stimulating  her 
children  to  ever  aspire  lo  the  trut,  the  beautiful 
and  the  good. 

Dr.  Reynolds'  great-grandfather.  Col.  Rey- 
nolds, was  killed  with  Gen.  Picton  at  the  battle 
of  Waterloo.  His  maternal  great-grandfather, 
the  Rev.  Benjamin  Philips,  with  whom  he  lived 
a  few  years,  and  for  whom  he  was  named,  was,  a 
clergyman  for  seventy-  years  in  the  town  where 
he  was  torn,  dying  at  the  age  of  over  one  hun- 
dred and  one.  The  Doctor  comes  of  a  famih- 
celebrated  in  the  church,  in  phy.sics.  and  in  the 
profession  of  arms,  his  progenitors  for  .several 
generations  being  clergymen,  educators,  doctors 
or  soldiers.  He  him.self  was  educated  for  the 
church  at  the  Narberth  Classical  and  Commer- 
cial Academy,  and  graduated  from  Brecon  Col- 
lege, which  is  incorporated  with  the  London  Uni- 
versity. He  was  al.so  educated  in  medicine  and 
surgery,  as  his  intention  was  to  become  a  medical 
missionary.  His  views  on  doctrinal  .subjects  un- 
dergoing a  change,  however,  he  abandoned  the- 
ology for  medicine,  qualifying  as  a  phy.sician  and 
surgeon  in  Bartholomew  Hospital,  London,  the 
Eclectic  Medical  College  of  Pennsylvania,  and  the 
University  of  Pennsylvania,  besides  subsequently 
attending  lectures  at  Rush  Medical  College  and 
Polyclinics  in    Chicago. 

On  the  Doctor's  arrival  in  this  country  in 
1861,  his  .sympathies  guided  him  to  place  his 
ser\ices  at  the  disposal  of  the  North  (jii  ac- 
count of  the  slavery  question,  and  as  a  volun- 
teer .surgeon  with  the  Army  of  the  Potomac  was 
a  professional  participator  in  and  witnessed  some 
of  the  principal  battles  of  that  memorable  cam- 
paign. His  brother.  George  Reynolds,  who  was 
Hospital  Steward  in  the  Regular  United  States 
Infantr>-,  lost  his  life  in  a  Southern  prison  by  be- 
ing wounded  in  the  battle  of  the  Wilderness,  after 
which  he  was  taken  prisoner  and  .sent  to  Rich- 
mond. Augu.sta,  Andersonville,  Charle.ston,  and 
finally  to  Florence,  S.  C,  where  he  died  of  stana- 
tion  in  November.  1864.  His  brother.  James  Davies 
Reynolds,  of  England,  has  written  and  published 
a  work    entitled    ' '  One  of  Them, ' '   in  which   he 


24 


474 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


has  given  an  account  of  the  inhuman  treatment 
of  his  brother  and  prisoners  of  war  in  Southern 
prisons.  George  preceded  the  Doctfir  to  this 
country,  and  had  become  so  imbued  with  the  spirit 
of  patriotism  and  love  for  his  adopted  land  that 
he  prevailed  upon  him  to  come  over.  The  Doctor 
considers  that  said  coming  was  the  turning  point 
of  his  whole  life.  He  came  to  Chicago  in  1863,  and  | 
therein  has  ever  practiced  his  profession.  Al- 
though he  has  done  a  great  deal  of  charitable 
work,  he  has  enjo5-ed  a  large  and  lucrative  prac- 
tice, being  one  of  the  mo.st  successful  jihy.sicians 
and  surgeons  in  the  city,  and  his  skill  has  fre- 
quentl.\-  been  demonstrated  in  man\-  difficult 
cases. 

The  Doctor  has  in  other  ways  demonstrated  his 
\ersatilit\-,  having  been  a  profes.sor  in  a  college, 
a  public  lecturer  and  a  prolific  writer.  He  is  an 
author  of  marked  ability;  has  been  a  voluminous 
and  vigorous  writer,  some  sixty  publications  hav- 
ing been  issued  from  the  press  on  medical,  physi- 
ological, philosophical,  Masonic  and  other  scien- 
tific subjects,  besides  a  large  amount  of  lighter  liter- 
ature, embracing  fiction  and  verse,  and  also  many 
articles  for  various  periodicals.  He  was  for  .some 
years  editor  of  a  medical  journal.  He  has  written 
some  very  interesting  works  on  Free  Masonr>- 
and  kindred  topics,  being  recognized  as  valuable, 
and  nuich  appreciated  in  the  ranks  of  the  frater- 
nity-. He  intends  to  publish  soon  a  new  and  en- 
larged edition  of  a  work  entitled  "The  Beauties  of 
Free  Masonry  Exemplified,"  al.so  "Ma.sonic  Gems 
and  Jtwels  of  Thought. ' '  Besides  being  a  man  of 
letters,  he  is  a  great  admirer  of  art  and  music, 
and  po.ssesses  a  good  voice.  He  has  written  and 
published  excellent  pieces  of  nuisic  that  ha\-e  had 
a  fair  circulation.  The  Doctor  has  a  private 
librarv  of  more  than  five  thou.saud  volumes,  one 
of  the  largest  owned  b\'  any  phssician  in  Chi- 
cago. 

The  Doctor  is  quite  a  societ>  man,  and  has  done 
a  great  deal  toward  the  success  of  the  various  or- 
ganizations with  which  he  has  been  comiected. 
For  nearly  a  quarter  of  a  century  he  has  been  a 
member  of  all  of  the  Masonic  organizations  of 
Chicago,  and  of  some  el.sewhere,  and  is  a  life 
member  of  many  of  them.     He  has   filled  offices 


in  nearly  all  of  them.     He  is  a  member  of  Whea- 
ton  Lodge  No.  269,  A.  F.   &  A.   M.;  Corinthian 
Chapter  No.  29,  R.  A.    M.;  Siloam   Council   No. 
53;   R.  S.  &  S.  E.  M.;  vSt.  Bernard  Connnandery 
No.  35,  K.    T. ;    Oriental    Sovereign    Consistory; 
Co-ordinate    Bodies'    .Scottish    Rite    Masons;   .St. 
John's    Conclave    No.    1,    Knights  of  Rome  and 
Con.stantine;  Knights  of  the  Holy  .Sepulchre  and 
St.  John  the    Evangeli.st;   Mecca   Temple,    Order 
of  the  Mystic  .Shrine;   Ro.sicrusian   .Society;   Ori- 
ental Rite  of  Myzraim;  Supreme  Rite  of  Memphis; 
Ancient  and  Primitive  Rite;  Swedenborgian  Rite; 
Electic    Order    of   the    Palm   and  .Shell;  Ma.sonic 
X'eteran  Association,  etc.    He  has  also  been  a  mem- 
ber of  man>-  of  the  leading  social  and   bene\'olent 
organizations,    literary    and    .scientific,  as  well  as 
patriotic  societies  of  the  city  and  the  ITnited  States, 
in  some  of  which,  especially  the  la.st,   he  takes  a 
VL-ry  active  interest.      He  has  always  been  a   Re- 
publican in  politics,  but  for  .some  time  pa.st  has, 
with    many    others,    been  anxious  to  see  a  new 
American    party  formed,   which  would    be   thor- 
oughly jiatriotic  and  lox  al   in  u])holding  the  free 
in.stitutions  of  this   country,   especially   the  free- 
school  sy.stem  of  education.     The  following  is  a 
list    of  the  different  organizations  with  which  he 
has  been    connected  and  is  now  a  member:     In- 
dependent   Order   of  Odd   Fellows,  Independent 
Order  of   Foresters,    Ancient  Order  of  Foresters, 
Ancient    Druids,    Knights  of   Pythias,    National 
Union, Cambrian  Benevolent  Society,  St.  George's 
Benevolent  A.ssociation,    Mutual  Benefit  A.ssocia- 
tion.   United  Order  of  Ancient  Templars,  Order 
of  the  Red  Cro.ss,  Order  of  Knights  of  Maccabees, 
Pilgrim  .Society,  Franklin  .Society,  Pre.ss  A.s.socia- 
tion.     Hand-in-Hand     Mutual     Benefit    Society, 
Knights    and    Ladies    of   Honor,   Order  of    Fra- 
ternal Circle,  Knights  of  the  Ancient  Essenic  Or- 
der, Knights  Templars  and  Masons    I.ift-    Indem- 
nity Company,  Union  Relief  A.s.sociation,   Amity 
Club,    I.   O.   O.    M.    C.    Club,    Republican  Club, 
North    American     Mutual     Benefit    Association, 
Cambrian  Literary  .Society,  Chicago  Literary   So- 
ciety,   Philosophical  .Society,    Loyal   Orange   In- 
stitution,   Black    Knights   of  the  Cam])  of  Israel, 
American     Orange     Knights,    Apprentice    Boys, 
American  Protecti\e  Association,  Union  League, 


Mks    Hi.ANciiK  !•;.   E.   Kkvnoi.ds. 


PORTRAIT  AND  RIOGRAPHICAL    RECORD. 


47; 


Order  of  American  rnioii.  Humane  Free 
dom  League,  American  Trotestanl  As.-Nodati<in, 
Knighbi  Commanders  of  the  Sun.  National 
League,  Anti-Papal  league,  I'ane  Republic  I^a 
gue,  Free  Speech  League.  Young  Men's  Chris- 
tian As-sociation,  Young  Mens  Christian  I'nion. 
British  American  Associati«>n  and  Citizens'  Com- 
mittee of  the  Hundred. 

In  most  of  the  organizations.  Dr.  Reynolds  has 
lx?en  presiding  officer,  and  thus  at  the  head  of  the 
whole  order,  and  in  nearly  all  the  Ix-netu  societies 
has  been  their  medical  officer,  and  in  many  the 
Grand  Medical  Exannner.  Some  of  the  stxrieties 
he  did  not  enter  from  choitx-.  but  had  to  become  a 
member  when  he  was  elected  Physician  and  Sur- 
geon. He  has  lieen  President  of  the  Cambrian  Be- 
nevolent Society,  holding  that  position  at  the  lime 
of  the  great  fire,  when  charitable  work  was  greatlv 
increased.  He  has  been  President  of  the  Cambrian 
Literary  Society,  is  Past  Supreme  Grand  Com- 
mander of  the  Order  of  the  Red  Cross,  and  is  the  au- 
thor of  its  rituals  and  mottoes  and  the  designer  of 
its  jewels,  etc.  He  is  Past  Supreme  Grand  Mas- 
ter of  the  Loyal  Orange  Institution  of  the  I'nited 
States,  and  has  for  years  been  Grand  Master  of 
the  Grand  Lodge  of  Illinois.  He  is  Pa.st  Grand 
Commander-in-Chief  of  the  Supreme  Cabinet  ol 
the  American  Orange  Knights  of  the  I'nited 
States,  and  is  Past  Grand  Sovereign  of  the  Im- 
perial Grand  Council  of  the  Knights  of  the  Red 
Cross  of  Rome  and  Constantine.  and  appendant 
orders;  he  is  also  President  of  the  British-Ameri- 
can Association,  and  has  been  President  of  the 
Citizens'  Committee  of  One  Hundred  since  its  or- 
ganization. He  has  been  High  Medical  Ex- 
aminer for  the  Independent  Order  of  Foresters. 
Supreme  Medical  Examiner  for  the  Order  of  the 
Red  Cross,  Medical  Examiner-in-Chief  of  the  In- 
dependent Order  of  Odd  Fellows  Insurance  Com- 
pany. Physician  for  the  Chicago  Relief  and  Aid 
Society.  Surgeon  of  Ellsworth  Zouaves.  Surgeon- 
General  of  the  Knights  Commander  of  the  Sun. 
and  Surgeon -General  of  the  American  Orange 
Knights.  He  is  at  present  the  official  physician 
and  surgeon,  also  Medical  Examiner,  of  several 
charitable  and  beneficial  s<K-ietie>  such  as  Char- 
ter C)ak    Insurance  Company.  New  N''>rk  Mutual 


Life  Insurance   C<>m|>any.    California    InsurauL-e 
Con»pan\.  St.  George's  Benevolent  Association 
the  Foresters,  Odd  Fellows.  I^yal  Orange  Order 
National  I'nion,  etc. 

After  living  in  this  couulr\  for  some  years,  Dr. 
Reynolds  visited  his  old  home  in  Wales  and  there 
was  niarrie<I  to  an  old  love.  Miss  Annie  Walters 
Thomas,  daughter  of  J»)hn  Thomas,  one  of  the 
Snjx.rintendents  of  Her  Majesty's  dockyard  at 
Pembroke  dockyard.  She  was  a  lady  gifted 
with  an  extraordinary  memory  and  a  well-cul- 
tivatetl  mind,  and  pos.ses.sed  considerable  literar>- 
ability  Her  writing  were  much  admireil  and 
appreciate*!.  esjK-cially  her  poems  entitled  'Songs 
of  Affection.  "  On  account  of  her  health,  the 
Doctor  built  his  home  and  went  to  live  at  Lom- 
bard, where  she  died  September  17,  1871.  and 
her  remains  were  buried  in  Graceland  Cenietcr>  . 
The  Woman's  Chajiter  of  the  Eastern  Star  had  a 
memorial  ser\ice  for  her  at  Blair  Hall,  on  Sun- 
day, October  S,  the  day  on  which  the  great  fire 
l)egan.  She  was  a  true  woman,  a  sincere  and  de- 
voted Christian,  esteemed  and  loved  by  all  who 
knew  her. 

In  1.S79  the  D<x'tor  married  Miss  Blanche  E.  E. 
Baldwin,  daughter  of  G.  S.  Baldwin,  of  Chicago, 
a  ver>-  amiable  lady,  posses.sed  of  many  accom- 
plishments. She  is  held  iti  high  regard  by  all 
who  enjoy  her  acquaintance  for  her  many  graces 
of  mind  and  heart.  Kindly  and  genial  in  her  dis- 
j»sition,  she  is  a  loving  wife  and  devoted  mother 
to  her  famil>-  of  ven,  interesting  children.  Those 
living  are  Annie  Blanche,  agetl  fourteen:  Lilliam 
Sara,  eleven:  Alice  Florence,  eight:  and  Benn 
Philips,  six  years.  Mrs.  Reynolds  is  aLso  a  very- 
active  and  energetic  worker  in  several  social, 
l)enev«»lent  and  patriotic  societies,  having  been 
for  years  Worthy  Mistress  of  the  Indies'  Loyal 
Orange  Association.  For  three  years  she  has 
lieen  the  Suprenie  President  of  the  Wtmian's  Am- 
erican I'rotective  As.sociation  of  the  I'nitetl  States 
and  Canada.  She  is  also  a  member  of  the  Order 
of  the  Ea.stern  Star.  Rebetx^  Degree,  Relief  Coq>s. 
Patriotic  Women.  Woman's  Club,  etc.  Mrs. 
Reynolds  originated  the  idea  of  the  human  flags 
fornie<l  by  four  thousand  school  children  on  the 
st.Tiii!^  i-rit  trii    iiiii-   Mil   the  \MM  and  the  other  ou 


478 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


the  east  side,  with  the  grand  reviewing  stand  on 
the  north  side,  of  the  Chicago  Postoffice,  where 
they  massed  the  design  of  the  three  national  colors, 
the  stars  and  stripes,  on  the  days  of  the  dedication 
of  the  World's  Fair,  and  superintended  the  flag 
exercises  on  that  occasion. 

The  Doctor's  office  and  surgery  are  at  No.  1 19 
Madison  Street,  Chicago.  His  home  is  at  Lom- 
bard, where  he  has  built  a  residence,  calling  it 
Karberth  Castle,  after  his  old  home  in  Wales.  He 
has  been  President  of  the  town  and  Justice  of  the 
Peace  for  several  years.  The  Doctor  is  a  genial, 
courteous  gentleman,  affable  and  pleasant  in 
manner,  and  by  his  integrity  and  worth  has  won 
the  e.steem  of  a  very  large  circle  of  friends. 

The  coat  of  arms  of  the  Doctor's  family  is  de- 
.scribed  as  follows:  Azuir  a  chevrroii  erni,  between 
three  crosses.  Croslet  fifchee  argent.  Crest  on 
eagle  close  argent,  ducally  gorged  and  lined.  .Motto: 
"  /-Ido  Scd  Cm'  I'iiti" —  '  Trnsl.  hut  take  care 
in  ?.  •Iiom . ' ' 


30HN  W.  OSBOKX.  one  of  the  honored  vet- 
erans of  the  late  war,  who  for  twenty  years 
has  served  as  night-watchman  in  Kvanston, 
is  a  native  of  Ireland.  He  was  born  in  County 
Limerick,  August  9,  1.S32,  and  is  a  son  of  Will- 
iam and  Catherine  (Gar\-ey)  Osborn,  both  of 
whom  were  natives  of  the  Emerald  Isle.  Their 
family  numbered  seven  children,  five  sons  and 
two  daughters,  but  only  two  are  now  living: 
James,  a  .school  teacher  in  Na.shville,  Tenn.;  and 
John  W.  of  this  .sketch.  The  father  followed 
farming  in  his  native  land,  and  there  spent  his  en- 
tire life,  his  death  occurring  in  1875.  His  wife 
passed  away  some  >ears  previous.  Both  were 
members  of  the  Catholic  Church.  The  paternal 
grandfather,  William  Osborn,  was  also  a  farmer 
of  Ireland,  and  in  that  couiitn,-  died  in  the  prime 
of  life.  He  had  a  family  of  five  children.  The 
maternal  grandfather,  John  Garvey,  reared  a  large 
family  and  spent  his  entire  life  on  the  Emerald 
Isle,  where  he  died  at  an  advanced  age.  By  trade 
he  was  a  cooper.     He  was  a  Revolutionist  in  the 


War  of  179S,  and  had  a  narrow  escape  from  death, 
being  sentenced  to  be  shot  within  a-half  mile  from 
his  own  door;  but  before  the  execution  was  car- 
ried out  he  was  pardoned. 

John  W.  Osborn  who.se  name  heads  this  record 
was  reared  in  his  native  land  until  nineteen  years 
of  age,  and  there  acquired  his  education.  He 
was  brought  up  as  a  .soldier  for  the  East  India 
service.  On  the  ist  of  November,  1850,  how- 
ever, he  landed  in  New  York  City  and  enlisted  in 
the  United  States  army.  Later,  he  shipped  as  a 
.sailor,  and  followed  the  seas  for  eighteen  years, 
during  which  time  he  was  twice  shipwrecked. 
His  life  has  not  been  an  uneventful  one,  being 
filled  with  many  adventures  and  interesting  ex- 
periences. His  travels  have  broadened  his  mind, 
as  such  experiences  always  do,  and  ha\e  stored 
it  with  many  interesting  reminiscences. 

On  the  ,vl  <>f  Jaiuiary,  1862,  Mr.  Osborn  en- 
listed for  the  late  war  and  began  .service  on  the 
gunboat  "  Ma.ssachu.setts."  He  was  in  the 
Peninsular  campaign  with  McClellan.  and  yet 
carries  the  marks  of  a  wound  wliiili  he  recei\ed 
in  the  hand.  He  served  three  years  on  that  ves- 
sel, and  in  an  engagement  captured  the  privateer 
"  Florida  "  in  the  harbor  of  Bay  Hie  on  the  night 
■of  October  7,  1864.  He  brought  the  vessel  into 
port  at  F'ortress  Monroe,  November  28.  This 
was  one  of  the  most  daring  feats  of  the  war,  as 
history  will  attest.  At  length  the  tiaval  troops 
were  sent  to  the  navy-yard  in  Boston,  where  Mr. 
O.sbom  was  discharged  on  the  2d  of  January, 
1865.  After  a  short  rest  he  re-enlisted  on  the 
13th  of  March,  1S65.  and  .served  as  Quartermas- 
ter until  April  i.  1866.  He  was  in  the  service 
altogether  for  four  years  and  seventeen  days,  and 
was  then  honorably  discharged  in  the  navy-yard 
at  Philadelphia.  He  was  always  faithful  to  his 
duty,  and  his  work  in  defen.se  of  the  Stars  and 
Stripes  proved  of  great  value  to  the  cause. 

On  the  15th  of  September,  1866,  Mr.  Osborn 
was  united  in  marriage  with  Johanna  Ellis,  daugh- 
ter of  William  and  Annie  (O'Brien)  Ellis.  Ten 
children  have  been  Ixim  of  this  union,  five  .sons 
and  five  daughters:  Mary  Ann,  Ellen,  William, 
Kate,  Maggie  (who  died  in  infancy),  James,  Jo- 
hanna, John,  Patrick  Henry  and  Thomas.    Ellen 


PORTRAIT  AXD  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


479 


is  the  wife  ot' an  artist  and  resides  in  Huntington. 
Ind.  The  parents  are  both  nienil>ers  of  the  Cath- 
olic Church,  and,  socially,  Mr.  Osboni  is  connected 
with  Evans  Lodge  No.  524,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.: 
Evans  Chapter  No.  144,  R.  A.  M.:  Conimaiidery 
No.  32,  and  the  Grand  Anny  of  the  Republic. 

The  month  following  his  discharge  from  the 
ser\ice  of  his  country,  Mr.  Osboni  came  to  Evan- 
ston,  where  he  has  since  made  his  home.  For 
three  seasons  he  sailed  on  the  Lakes,  and  then 
worked  at  various  occupations  until  the  1st  of 
October,  1873,  when  he  was  employed  as  night- 
watchman  by  the  business  men  of  Evanston.  He 
still  .senes  in  that  capacitj-,  and  in  the  twenty- 
years  that  have  passed  since  he  entered  upon  the 
engagement  he  has  lost  only  three  nights.  His 
continued  ser\-ice  shows  that  he  has  the  confidence 
of  his  employers,  and  that  he  is  ever  true  to  the 
trust  reposed  in  him.  As  the  result  of  his  labors 
he  has  accumulated  some  capital,  and  now  has  a 
good  home  prof>ert\-  in  Evanston.  Injxjlitics,  he 
is  a  Republican. 


^-^l 


~^i 


^  H.  KREFT.  a  well-known  contractor  and 
I  1  milder  of  Des  Plaines,  and  a  prominent  and 
G/  influential  citizen,  who  has  spent  the  greater 
part  of  his  life  in  Cook  County,  well  deserves  rep- 
resentation in  this  volume.  He  was  born  in 
Shaumburgh.  on  the  20th  of  August,  1859,  and  is 
a  son  of  Henry  and  E.  (  Hechti  Kreft,  who  emi- 
grated to  Cook  County  in  1845,  becoming  early 
settlers  of  this  comniunit\-.  They  had  a  family  of 
nine  children,  seven  sons  and  two  daughters. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  the  eldest  son. 
He  was  educated  in  the  public  .schools  of  his  na- 
tive county  and  in  the  German  parochial  .schools. 
While  a  schooltoy  his  vacations  were  spent  in 
farm  work,  and  he  early  became  familiar  with  all 
the  details  of  farm  life.  His  laljors  in  the  fields 
upon  the  home  farm  continued  until  twenty  years 
of  age,  when  he  began  learning  the  carpenter's 
trade,  at  which  he  worked  for  four  years.  On 
the  expiration  of  that  period  he  went  West  and 
spent  two  years  in  Kansas  and  Iowa,   but  during 


that  time  he  decided  that  he  preferred  northeastern 
Illinois  as  a  place  of  residence,  and  about  1S85 
came  to  Des  Plaines,  where  he  has  since  made  his 
home.  During  the  past  four  years  he  has  en- 
gaged in  contracting  and  building,  and  his  efforts 
in  this  direction  have  met  with  good  success,  he 
having  won  a  liberal  patronage  on  account  of  his 
honorable  dealings  and  earnest  efforts  to  please  his 
customers.  To  some  extent  he  has  invested  his 
earnings  in  real  estate,  and  now  has  one  hundred 
and  sixty  acres  of  land  in  Sac  County,  Iowa,  be- 
sides his  pleasant  residence  in  Des  Plaines. 

On  the  6th  of  September.  1891,  was  celebrated 
the  marriage  of  Mr.  Kreft  and  Miss  Emma  Towne. 
They  have  many  warm  friends  in  the  communitj- 
and  hold  an  enviable  position  in  social  circles. 
In  politics,  Mr.  Kreft  is  a  supporter  of  the  Demo- 
cratic party  and  its  principles,  and  is  now  serving 
as  a  memljer  of  the  Central  Committee  from 
Maine  Township.  He  was  chosen  at  the  special 
election  held  on  the  2d  of  October,  1893,  ^  fi^ 
the  unexpired  term  of  A.  Eckcrt  as  \'illage 
Trustee,  and  is  now  serving  in  that  office.  He  is 
also  \'ice- President  of  the  Des  Plaines  Democratic 
Club.  He  holds  membership  with  the  Des 
Plaines  Benevolent  Association,  and  with  the 
Lutheran  Church.  He  is  true  to  every  trust  re- 
posed in  him.  both  public  and  private,  and  his 
fellow-townsmen  recognize  in  J.  H.  Kreft  one  of 
the  leading  and  representative  citizens  of  the  com- 
munit\-.  In  the  long  years  of  his  residence  in 
Cook  County  he  has  won  many  firiends,  who  es- 
teem him  highly  for  his  .sterling  worth. 

r~  W.  MAX  HAMMERSCHMIDT,  a  well- 
Y^  known  resident  of  Ehnhurst,  has  the  honor 
I  of  being  a  native  of  Illinois.  He  was  boni 
in  Xapen-ille.  December  6,  1864,  and  is  a  son  of 
Adolph  and  Adeline  (  \"onoven  )  Hammerschmidt, 
natives  of  Germany,  the  former  bom  in  Altena 
and  the  latter  in  Dus.seldorf  His  grandfather. 
Rev.  F.  W.  Max  Hammerschinidt,  was  a  Luth- 
eran minister,  and  spent  his  entire  life  in  Ger- 
many, where  he  died  about  1865,  at  the  age  of 


480 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


seventy  years  (see  biography  of  Adolph  Hain- 
merschmidt  in  this  work  ) .  He  served  as  a  sol- 
dier in  the  War  of  181 2.  The  father  of  our  sub- 
ject has  followed  the  life  of  a  farmer.  It  was  in 
1848  that  he  came  to  America,  locating  near 
Naperville,  where  he  worked  for  a  year  as  a 
farm  hand.  He  then  purchased  a  farm  of  seventy 
acres,  to  which  he  has  since  added  by  additional 
purchase  ninety-five  acres.  His  land  is  now  un- 
der a  high  state  of  cultivation,  and  is  well  im- 
proved with  all  the  accessories  and  conveniences 
of  a  model  farm.  Himself  and  wife  are  members 
of  the  Lutheran  Church.  While  in  Germany, 
he  ser\-ed  as  a  soldier  in  the  regular  army. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hammer.schmidt  had  a  fannly  of 
eleven  children,  four  .sons  and  seven  daughters, 
and  all  were  born  and  reared  in  DuPage  County. 
They  are  William;  Mary;  Ernest,  deceased;  V.U/.- 
abeth;  Anna,  deceased;  Clara,  wife  of  Rev. 
Adolph  Baltzer;  F.  W.  Max;  Frieda:  Richard; 
Lydia;  and  Martha,  deceased. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  in  his  boyhood  and 
youth  aided  in  the  labors  of  the  farm,  attended 
the  common  schools,  and  completed  his  educa- 
tion in  the  Naperville  College.  For  a  year  after- 
ward he  gave  his  father  the  benefit  of  his  services. 
He  then  left  home  and  came  to  Ehuhurst  to  take 
charge  of  his  father's  interests  in  a  stone  quarrj-, 
which  the  latter  owned  in  partnership  with 
Henry  A.ssmann,  which  connection  continued  one 
year,  when  Mr.  Hammerschmidt  bought  his 
partner's  interest.  Since  that  time  he  has  been 
carrying  on  the  business  alone.  He  employs 
from  thirty-five  to  one  hundred  and  fifteen  men 
in  his  quarry,  according  to  the  sea.son  of  the  year, 
and  furnishes  stone  for  Chicago  and  a  number  of 
other  cities.  He  has  ballast,  building,  cut.  di- 
mension, and  all  other  kitids  of  limestone. 

Mr.  Hammerschmidt  was  married  on  the  loth 
of  August,  1892,  to  Miss  Alvena  Heidermaun,  a 
daughter  of  Dr.  George  F.  and  Hannah  (Sween) 
Heidermaun.  They  have  a  beautiful  home  in 
Elmhurst,  and  are  highly  respected  citizens,  who 
in  social  circles  hold  an  enviable  position.  They 
belong  to  the  Evangelical  Lutheran  Church,  and 
in  politics  Mr.  Hammerschmidt  is  a  supporter  of 
the  Republican  party.     He  now  has  control  of  a 


good  business,  and  is  enjoying  a  fine  trade.  His 
prosperity  is  well  merited,  for  it  comes  to  him  as 
the  reward  of  earnest  effort.  Mr.  Hammer- 
schmidt spent  his  entire  life  in  this  county,  has 
witnessed  much  of  its  upbuilding,  and  has  borne 
his  part  in  its  development. 


_=) 


^^^! 


R' 


ICHARD  W.  OWEN,  one  of  the  honored 
veterans  of  the  late  w'ar,  now  resides  in 
(tIcu  bHlyn,  but  is  prominently  connected 
with  business  interests  in  Chicago.  He  was  born 
in  Carnarvonshire,  Wales,  June  8,  1843,  and  is  a 
son  of  William  and  Catherine  (Jones)  Owen, 
who  were  also  natives  of  Wales.  His  paternal 
great-grandfather  was  Owen  Jones,  of  Town 
Llanconda  Gwredog  Esaf,  and  according  to  the  an- 
cient custom,  his  sou,  the  grandfather  of  our  sub- 
ject, was  given  the  name  of  Hugh  Owen.  For 
many  generations  the  famil\-  followed  fanning. 
The  mother  of  our  subject  was  a  daughter  of 
Owen  Jones.  Hugh  Owen  had  a  famil>'  of  five, 
and  in  1843  he  came  to  America,  his  last  days 
being  spent  in  Columbus,  Wis.,  where  he  died  in 
1857,  at  the  age  of  eighty-eight  years.  His  wife, 
Jane  Owen,  also  aged  eighty-eight,  passed  away 
about  three  months  previous.  They  were  accom- 
panied to  America  by  William  and  Richard.  Owen 
Jones,  who  came  over  in  1843,  settled  in  Slating- 
ton,  Pa. 

The  father  of  our  subject  was  born  in  Wales, 
September  8,  iHoo,  and  in  1845  crossed  the  At- 
lantic. For  many  years  he  engaged  in  farming 
in  Columbus,  Wis.,  and  in  1879  he  removed  to 
Randolph,  Wis.,  where  he  lived  retired  until  he 
died,  in  October,  1882.  His  death  resulted  from 
being  run  over  by  a  team.  .Several  ribs  were 
broken,  his  chest  was  crushed,  and  one  rib  pierced 
his  lungs,  but  he  survived  the  accident  for  nine 
days,  a  fact  which  indicated  his  wonderful  powers 
of  endurance.  His  wife  passed  away  in  Columbus, 
Wis.,  in  1864,  at  the  age  of  fifty -five.  They  had 
four  daughters  and  five  .sons:  Ellen,  wife  of  Rev. 
J.  R.  Daniels,  of  Lake  Emily,  Wis.;  Jane,  wife  of 
G.  G.  Evans,  of  Boulder,  Colo. ;  Hugh, of  Chicago; 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


4S1 


John,  of  Raiulolph,  Wis.;  Richard  W.;  Marijery, 
wife  of  H.  I'richard,  of  Racine,  Wi.s.:  William, 
who  died  in  infancy:  Mary,  who  died  at  the  age  of 
four  years:  and  William,  a  re.sident  of  Denver,  Colo. 
The  parents  of  this  family  were  devout  members 
of  the  Calvinist  Methodi.st  Church.  The  father 
filled  a  numl>er  of  local  offices  and  was  a  stanch 
Republican  in  politics,  as  are  all  of  his  sons. 

Richard  W.  Owen  whose  name  heads  this 
record  j^rew  to  manhood  upon  the  home  farm  and 
received  but  limited  educational  privileges.  At 
the  age  of  eighteen  he  began  to  learn  the  trade  of 
haniess-making,  but  the  following  year,  in  Au- 
gust. 1862,  he  enli.sted  in  Company  B,  Twenty- 
ninth  Wisconsin  Infantry,  and  ser\'ed  until  the 
clo.seof  the  war.  He  was  never  absent  from  his 
regiment,  and  he  participated  in  twenty-.seven  en- 
gagements, including  the  battles  of  Port  Gibson, 
Champion  Hill,  siege  of  Vick.sburg.  Sabine  Cross 
Roads,  .siege  of  Mobile,  etc.  At  the  siege  of  Mo- 
bile the  colors  of  the  Twenty-ninth  Regiment 
were  the  first  planted  in  the  city.  After  the  fall 
of  Mobile.  Mr.  Owen  was  appointed  Provost- Mar- 
shal Detective,  and  his  duties  in  that  capacity- 
took  him  into  some  dangerous  places  and  he  passed 
through  some  thrilling  experiences.  He  was  ever 
faithful  to  the  Old  Flag  and  the  cause  which  it 
represented. 

On  his  return,  Mr.  Owen  worked  at  his  trade 
in  Cambria  and  Racine,  Wis.,  sending  as  foreman 
of  a  factorj-  in  the  latter  place.  In  i,S68,  he 
embarked  in  business  for  himself  in  Fox  Lake, 
Wis.,  but  in  1870  returned  to  Racine,  and  in  1872 
went  to  Chicago,  where  he  worked  as  a  street-car 
conductor  for  a  few  months.  He  then  began  the 
manufacture  of  leather  novelties  in  the  McCormick 
Block,  and  later  removed  his  business  to  the 
corner  of  State  and  Lake  Streets.  The  finn  of 
Herrill  6t  Owen  was  formed,  and  was  succeeded 
bj-  that  of  Lanz,  Owen  &  Co. ,  which  now  has  a 
large  factory  and  does  an  extensi\'e  business  at 
the  corner  of  Lake  and  Fifth  Avenue.  vSome 
knowledge  of  the  growth  of  the  enterprise  may  be 
obtained  from  the  statement  that  when  Mr.  Owen 
embarked  in  the  same,  he  was  able  to  do  all  the 
work  himself,  but  now  over  two  hundred  men  are 
employed,  in  order  to  supply  the  demand  for  their 


g(K)ds.  Mr.  Owen  is  also  President  of  the  Cam- 
bro  Printing  Company,  \'ice- President  of  the 
Meeker  Mainifacturing  Company,  and  the  Jessie 
Gold  Mines,  also  \'ice-President  of  the  Glen  Kllyn 
Building  and  Loan  Association.  His  advantages 
in  early  life  were  limited,  and  from  the  lowest 
round  of  the  ladder  he  has  worked  his  way  up- 
ward to  the  high  position  on  which  he  now  .stands. 
Through  the  legitimate  channels  of  business  he 
ha.s  won  success  as  the  reward  of  his  untiring  ef- 
forts and  good  management.  He  is  now  con- 
nected with  some  of  the  leading  concerns  of  Chi- 
cago, and  is  recognized  as  one  of  its  most  promi- 
nent bu.siness  men. 

Mr.  Owen  was  a  Director  and  Chairman  of  the  Fi- 
nance Committee  of  the  International  Eisteddfod, 
in  connection  with  the  World's  Fair,  held  in  1893. 
He  votes  with  the  Republican  party,  and  socially 
is  connected  with  the  Masonic  fraternitv  and  the 
Grand  Army  of  the  Republic.  His  wife  is  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Congregational  Church. 

Mr.  Owen  was  married  May  7,  1868,  to  Jennie 
A.  Roberts,  daughter  of  William  J.  and  Margaret 
Roberts,  of  Racine,  Wis.  She  was  born  in  Utica, 
N.  Y.,  while  her  parents  and  grandparents  were 
bom  iu  Llangefin,  North  Wales.  The  former 
had  a  family  of  six  children,  but  Maggie  died  iu 
infancy:  Kittie  died  at  the  age  of  nine  and  a-half 
years:  and  Rose  died  in  infancy.  Those  living 
are  Willie  R..  a  .student  of  Bryant  &  Stratton's 
College,  Richard  W.  and  Edith  Gwladys.  Since 
1S92,  the  Owen  family  has  resided  in  Glen  EUvn, 
where  they  have  a  fine  home.  Its  owner  is  an 
affable,  genial,  cultured  and  worthy  gentleman 
and  a  public-spirited  citizen. 


=-^^^^1=*= 


\i  I).  BROWX,  a  leading  attorney,  engaged 
y  in  the  practice  of  law  at  Xo.  69  Dearlwrn 
C9  Street,  Chicago,  makes  his  home  in  Palatine. 
We  wish  to  add  to  the  Biographic.\l  Rkcord 
of  Cook  County  the  sketch  of  his  life — the  sketch 
of  one  of  the  honored  first  settlers  and  pioneer 
lawyers  of  Chicago,  who  dates  his  residence  in 
this  community  from  the  fall  of  1855,    and  who 


482 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


has  been  engaged  in  active  law  practice  for  thirty - 
eight  years.  He  was  born  in  Appleton.  \\'aldo 
Countj-.  Me.,  on  the  22d  of  May,  1829.  His  fa- 
ther and  grandfather  both  bore  the  name  of  Ben- 
jamin Brown,  and  both  were  natives  of  the  Pine 
Tree  State.  The  family  is  of  English  lineage, 
and  was  founded  in  Maine  at  a  ver\'  early  day  in 
its  history.  The  father  of  our  subject  was  reared 
to  manhood  in  Waldo  Count\-,  and  there  married 
Deborah  Jameson,  also  a  native  of  Maine.  He 
became  one  of  the  substantial  farmers  of  Waldo 
County.  At  length  he  removed  from  Appleton 
to  Sear.smont.  where  he  spent  the  last  years  of  his 
life,  his  death  occurring  in  1847.  His  wife  sur- 
vived him  for  a  number  of  years  and  reared  her 
family,  consisting  of  nine  .sons  and  a  daughter, 
who  grew  to  mature  years.  The  eldest,  Martin, 
died  when  a  young  man.  Benjamin  is  now  liv- 
ing retired  in  Lincolnville,  Me. :  E]ihraim,  who 
followed  farming,  is  now  deceased;  Daniel  is  en- 
gaged in  agricultural  pursuits  in  Searsmont,  Me. : 
Elisha  is  now  deceased ;  M.  D.  is  the  next  younger; 
Adrian,  deceased,  was  a  physician  of  superior 
skill  and  ability;  and  Sarah,  the  only  daughter  of 
the  family,  died  at  the  age  of  nineteen  years. 

We  now  take  up  the  history  of  the  gentleman 
who.se  name  heads  this  record.  In  early  life  he 
received  but  limited  educational  privileges,  but  at 
the  age  of  eighteen  years  he  began  study  in 
Corinth  Academy,  which  he  attended  through 
the  summer  months,  while  in  the  winter  season 
he  engaged  in  teaching,  and  thereby  won  the 
money  to  pay  his  tuition.  At  length  he  com- 
pleted the  preparatory'  course,  and  entered  Water- 
ville  College,  where  he  remained  as  a  student 
until  his  means  were  exhausted,  when  he  again 
took  up  teaching.  After  attending  Waterville 
College  for  three  years,  he  entered  Dartmouth 
College,  completed  the  cour,se  in  that  institution, 
and  was  graduated  with  the  Class  of  '53.  .Mr. 
Brown  was  then  chosen  Principal  of  the  academy 
at  Randolph  Center,  Me. ,  of  which  he  continued 
in  charge  for  eighteen  months,  when  he  resigned 
to  accept  the  principalship  of  the  West  Randolph 
Academy.  There  he  continued  for  six  months 
as  a  teacher  of  languages  and  higher  mathematics. 
In  the  fall  of  1855,  he  came  to  Illinois,  locating  in 


Chicago.  He  had  previously  read  law  to  some 
extent,  and  a  few  weeks  after  his  arrival  here  he 
was  admitted  to  the  Bar.  Immediately  thereaf- 
ter he  began  practice.  All  of  his  leisure  time  he 
de\  oted  to  study  and  research  along  the  line  of 
his  chosen  work,  and  he  had  not  a  little  lei- 
sure time  during  the  first  year  or  two.  Soon, 
however,  his  earnest  efforts,  his  knowledge  of 
law,  and  his  ability  as  an  advocate,  won  recogni- 
tion and  secured  him  a  good  practice,  which  has 
continuetl  up  to  the  present  day.  He  now  makes 
a  .specialty  of  defending  criminal  cases,  of  drain- 
age suits  and  contested  cases,  and  in  his  labors 
has  met  with  marked  sutxess. 

Mr.  Brown  has  been  twice  married.  He  first 
wedded  Miss  Hattie  White,  of  Sewickley,  Pa.,  a 
most  estimable  lady  of  fine  education  and  attain- 
ments. Her  father,  D.  N.  White,  was  publisher 
and  proprietor  of  the  Pittsburgh  (iazclle,  and  one 
of  the  organizers  and  founders  of  the  Republican 
party.  In  1878  Mr.  Brown  lo.st  his  wife,  who 
died  in  Chicago,  leaving  a  daughter,  Ella  M., 
now  the  wife  of  Sherman  P.  Stiles,  who  for  a 
number  of  years  has  held  the  office  of  Money  Or- 
der Inspector  of  Chicago,  and  is  a  mail  of  sterling 
character  and  superior  business  capacity.  By  the 
fir.st  union  there  was  also  a  son,  Arthur  Lincoln, 
who  died  at  the  age  of  twenty-four  years.  He 
was  a  young  man  of  good  education  and  held  a 
responsible  position  in  the  city. 

On  the  28th  of  January,  1879,  inO.shkosh,  Wis.. 
Mr.  Brown  wedded  Miss  Alice  Wilcox,  daughter  of 
Rev.  James  Wilcox,  a  mini.ster  of  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church.  The  lady  was  born  and  reared 
in  Canada.     They  have  one  .son,  Milton  Dudley. 

In  1S80  our  subject  purchased  a  fine  re.sidence 
property  in  Palatine,  and  removed  to  this  beauti- 
ful suburb,  where  he  has  since  resided.  The 
household  is  the  abode  of  hospitality,  and  both 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Brown  have  the  high  regard  of 
friends  and  acquaintances.  He  has  been  identi- 
fied with  the  Republican  party  since  its  organiza- 
tion, and  is  a  warm  advocate  of  its  men  and  meas- 
ures. He  has  never  been  an  a.spirant  for  public 
office,  but  was  solicited  and  urged  by  his  friends 
to  become  a  candidate  for  Circuit  Judge  of  Cook 
Count>-.     At  length  he  gave  a  reluctant  consent. 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


483 


but  did  not  j^o  into  the  oaiiipaigu  or  solicit  votes. 
Although  he  tailed  at  the  election,  he  secured  a 
most  flattering  vote,  running  far  ahead  of  his 
ticket.  Socially,  he  is  coiuiected  with  the  Inde- 
pendent Order  of  Odd  Fellows.  His  wife  belongs 
to  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  of  Palatine, 
and,  although  he  does  not  hold  membership  with 
it,  he  contributes  liberally  to  its  support.  For 
almost  forty  years  Mr.  Brown  has  been  a  resident 
of  Cook  County,  and  a  prominent  member  of  the 
Chicago  Bar.  He  may  truly  be  called  a  .self-made 
man,  for  he  started  out  in  life  empty-handed, 
working  his  way  upward  by  merit  and  effort. 
The  determination  and  progre.s.sive  .spirit  which 
he  manifested  in  making  his  way  unaided  through 
college  have  characterized  his  entire  life,  and  been 
the  means  of  his  success. 


r~  H.  ESCHER  is  one  of  the  wide-awake  and 
1^  enterprising  young  business  men  of  Des 
I  Plaines,  where  he  now  successfully  carries 
on  operations  as  a  druggist.  He  here  located  in 
^Iarch.  1891,  and  in  the  two  years  and  a-half 
which  have  since  come  and  gone  he  has  built  up 
a  handsome  trade.  His  entire  life  has  been  passed 
in  northeastern  Illinois.  He  was  born  in  Chi- 
cago, on  the  1 6th  of  Decemlier,  1866,  and  is  the 
son  of  Hieronraans  Escher.  a  native  of  Germany. 
After  arriving  at  years  of  maturitx',  the  father 
was  united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Maria  I'llman,' 
and  they  became  the  parents  of  ten  children,  six 
.sons  and  four  daughters. 

The  members  of  the  Escher  family  are  Charles, 
now  a  resident  of  Chicago;  Annie,  wife  of  J.  Gil- 
bert, of  Chicago:  Amelia,  wife  of  (i.  Brown,  who 
makes  his  home  in  the  same  city;  Laura,  wife  of 

E.  J.  Faypel,  of  Chicago;  Augusta,  wife  of  E.  J. 
Hammond,   a  resident    of   New  Bedford,    Mass.; 

F.  H.,  whose  name  heads  this  sketch;  Henry, 
who  is  also  .living  in  the  metropolis  of  Illinois; 
and  Albert  and  Ferdinand,  who  make  their  home 
in  the  same  city. 

No  event  of  special  importance  occurred  during 
the   boyhood    and    youth  of  our  subject,    which 


were  c|uielly  passed  under  the  parental  roof.  He 
acquired  his  early  education  in  the  public  schools 
of  Chicago,  and  afterwards  received  private  in- 
struction in  the  sciences.  When  he  had  made 
choice  of  the  drug  business  as  a  pursuit  which  he 
wished  to  follow  as  a  means  of  livelihood,  to  fit 
himself  for  this  end  he  entered  the  Chicago 
.School  of  Pharmacy,  where  he  pursued  a  thor- 
ough course  of  studs .  He  then  entered  upon 
his  busine.ss  career  as  a  druggist  in  Arlington 
Heights,  in  1889.  For  about  two  years  he  re- 
mained in  that  place,  and  in  March,  1891,  came 
to  Des  Plaines,  where  he  has  since  carried  on  busi- 
ness. He  has  a  well-appointed  drug  store,  stocked 
with  everything  found  in  a  first-cla.ss  establish- 
ment of  the  kind. 

On  the  20th  of  October,  1891,  Mr.  Escher  led 
to  the  marriage  altar  Miss  Hattie  Reincke,  who 
was  then  living  in  Arlington  Heights,  but  was 
born  in  Chicago.  The  young  couple  are  well 
known  in  this  community,  and  hold  an  enviable 
position  in  social  circles.  Mr.  Fischer  takes  con- 
siderable interest  in  civic  .societies,  and  belongs  to 
Court  Maine  Lodge  No.  231,  I.  O.  O.  F. ;  Gladi- 
ator Lodge  No.  450,  K.  P.;  Phil  Sheridan  Coun- 
cil No.  54,  R.  L.;  and  Commonwealth  Council 
No.  405,  N.  U.  Mr.  Escher  cast  his  first  Presi- 
dential vote  for  Hon.  Benjamin  Harrison  in  1888, 
and  is  a  stalwart  supporter  of  the  principles  of  the 
Republican  party. 


e^+^i-= 


3OHN  C.  BEHRENS,  who  is  exten.sively  en- 
gaged ill  general  merchandising  in  Des 
Plaines,  has  the  honor  of  being  a  native  of 
Illinois.  He  was  born  in  Will  Count\-,  on  the 
22d  of  July,  1852,  and  is  the  eldest  child  of  Con- 
rad and  Sophia  (Pflugger)  Behrens,  both  of  whom 
were  natives  of  He.sse,  Germain-.  The  father 
was  a  farmer  by  occupation,  and  on  emigrating  to 
America  took  up  his  residence  in  Will  Count\-, 
where  he  lived  for  many  years.  Thefaiiiih-  num- 
bered eight  children,  four  sons  and  four  daughters, 
as  follows:  John  C,  of  this  sketch;  William,  who 
makes    his   home    in     Minnesota;    Sophia,    wife 


484 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


of  William  W'iiidheim,  a  resident  of  Arlington 
Heights;  August,  who  is  also  located  in  Minne- 
sota; Annie,  wife  of  Henry  Shrever,  who  is  living 
in  Crescent  City,  111.;  Mary,  wife  of  Fred  Mun- 
stermann,  of  Crescent  City;  Christian,  whose 
home  is  in  Crete,  Will  County;  and  Alvina,  the 
younge.st  of  the  faniih'. 

Mr.  Behrens  whose  name  heads  this  record 
was  reared  in  the  countv  of  his  nativity  until 
nineteen  "years  of  age,  and  during  that  time  at- 
tended a  German  school.  He  also  spent  much  of 
his  time  in  work  upon  his  father's  farm,  and  ere 
leaving  his  native  county  he  learned  the  shoe- 
maker's trade.  The  year  1871  witnessed  his  ar- 
rival in  Des  Plaines,  where  for  five  years  he  con- 
tinned  to  work  at  shoemaking.  He  also  here 
attended  evening  .school,  and  b\-  .study,  experi- 
ence and  observation  he  has  become  a  well-in- 
formed man. 

In  1873  Mr.  Behrens  was  united  in  marriage 
with  Mi.ss  Mar^-  Senne,  and  their  union  has  been 
bles.sed  with  six  children,  but  Matilda,  the  only 
daughter,  is  now  decea.sed.  The  .sons  are  still 
living,  and  are  as  follows:  Henni-,  Edward, 
George,  Martin  and  Christof.  All  are  still  with 
their  parents. 

With  the  capital  he  acquired  through  industry- 
and  economy  while  working  at  the  shoemaker's 
trade,  Mr.  Behrens  was  enabled  to  establish  him- 
.self  in  the  mercantile  business.  In  1876  he  formed 
a  partnership  with  H.  C.  Senne,  and  they  opened 
a  general  store  in  Des  Plaines.  The  partnership 
was  continued  for  about  two  years,  when  Mr. 
Behrens  bought  out  Mr.  Senna's  interest.  He 
carries  an  immense  stock  of  goods  and  enjoys  an 
excellent  trade,  which  is  constantly  increasing. 
His  business  career  has  been  characterized  by 
honorable,  upright  methods,  which,  combined 
with  his  earnest  efforts  to  please  his  customers, 
have  won  for  him  a  liberal  patronage,  and  brought 
him  well-merited  success. 

In  his  political  affiliations,  Mr.  Behrens  is  in- 
dependent, supporting  the  man  whom  he  thinks 
best  qualified  for  the  office,  regardless  of  party 
affiliations.  In  religious  belief,  he  is  a  Lutheran, 
belonging  to  the  church  in  Des  Plaines.  He  has 
ser\-ed  as  Treasurer  of  the  Benevolent  Societj-  for 


fi\e  years,  and  was  Tru.stee  of  the  TyUtheran 
School  from  1888  until  1890.  He  has  been  active 
in  benevolent  and  charitable  work,  and  always 
has  the  best  interests  of  the  coinmunitv   at  heart. 


-^} 


^-^ 


[^ 


B" 


HENRY  S.  MADDOCK  is  one  of  the  officials 
of  Evanston,  now  serving  as  Commissioner 
of  Public  Works.  He  has  been  prominent 
in  the  ])ublic  affiiirs  of  this  place,  and  is  ever 
found  in  the  front  rank  of  those  enterprises  which 
are  calculated  to  advance  the  general  wrelfare. 
The  record  of  his  life  is  as  follows:  He  was  bom 
in  Chester,  Pa.,  June  3,  1851,  and  is  a  .son  of 
Thomas  H.  and  Rebecca  T.  (Pierce)  Maddock. 
They  are  descendants  of  Quaker  families,  who 
came  to  America  from  England  with  William 
Penn.  The  father  was  a  lawyer  by  profession, 
and  dealt  largely  in  real  estate.  About  1 856  he 
emigrated  westward  to  Kansas,  but  spent  only  a 
few  years  in  that  State,  owing  to  the  condition  of 
the  country,  which  was  then  the  scene  of  the 
border  troubles  which  preceded  the  Rebellion. 
He  then  returned  to  his  old  home  in  Peiuisylva- 
nia,  but  after  the  war  he  again  went  to  Kansas, 
where  he  spent  the  remainder  of  his  life,  his  death 
occurring  in  December,  1883,  at  the  age  of  sixty- 
three  years.  His  widow  .still  survives  him  and  is 
now  living  in  Philadelphia,  Pa. 

Henry  Maddock  acquired  his  education  in  the 
public  schools  of  his  nati\e  State,  and  in  the 
Polytechnic  College,  from  which  he  was  gradu- 
ated in  1871.  He  was  then  emj)loyed  for  some 
two  years  in  the  Cit\-  Engineer's  office  in  Ches- 
ter, Pa.,  and  then  entered  the  employ  of  the  Penn- 
sylvania Railroad,  working  on  the  extension  of 
the  road  along  the  Susquehanna  River  for  some 
four  years.  His  ne.xt  engagement  was  with  the 
Harlin  &  Holling.sworth  Company,  car-builders 
of  Wilmington,  Del.,  with  which  concern  he  was 
connected  until  the  autinnn  of  1880.  He  then 
secured  emplo\ment  on  the  main  sur\-ey  work  of 
the  Philadelphia,  Wilmington  &  Baltimore  Rail- 
road, with  which  he  contiimed  until  that  road 
was  sold  to  the  Pennsylvania  Central,  when  he 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


485 


went  with  S.  T.  Fuller,  his  Chief  Eiigiueer,  to 
Texas,  suneyiiig  for  the  lines  of  the  Denver  & 
Rio  Grande  Road  which  were  being  built  in  that 
State  Ijetween  Houston,  Galveston  and  \'ictoria. 
Subsequently,  Mr.  Maddock  engaged  with  the 
Southern  Pacific  on  their  extension  to  San  An- 
tonio and  El  Paso,  in  charge  of  the  bridge  and 
niasonr>-  work,  and  also  the  construction  of  the 
round-houses,  etc.  Later,  he  returned  to  Gal- 
veston and  laid  out  the  town  of  Garfield,  Tex. 

Since  September.  1883,  Mr.  Maddock  has  made 
his  home  in  Evanston.  On  locating  here,  he  first 
engaged  with  the  Northwestern  Railroad  Com- 
pany as  Assistant  Department  Agent,  and  the  fol- 
lowing spring  was  sent  on  a  suney  from  Belvidere 
to  Spring  Valley,  111.  During  the  season  of  1885 
he  was  employed  by  the  mining  companx-  to  la> 
out  the  village  of  Spring  Valley,  and  in  locating 
and  engineering  the  mining  work.  This  occu- 
pied his  time  until  the  spring  of  1886,  when  he 
returned  to  Evanston  and  accepted  a  position  in 
the  office  of  Mr.  Man.sfield.  Mechanical  Engi- 
neer and  former  Superintendent  of  the  Pullman 
and  e.xperimental  engineers  for  the  Pan  Handle 
Railroad.  In  the  early  part  of  1887  he  engaged 
with  the  Rock  Island  Railroad  on  their  extension 
we-st  of  the  Mis.souri  River,  having  charge  of  their 
lines  through  Sumner,  Harney  and  Butler  Coun- 
ties, Kan.  (which  included  the  city  of  Wichita), 
and  also  lines  through  Clay  and  Worth  Counties, 
and  forty  miles  of  road  in  Colorado  west  to  River 
Bend.  He  next  took  charge  of  the  work  being  done 
by  L.  M.  Loss,  contractor  for  the  masonry  of  the 
bridge  being  built  across  the  Mississippi  River  at 
Memphis,  Tenn.,  and  also  one  at  Alton,  111. 

In  1881,  in  Port  Deposit,  Md.,  Mr.  Maddock 
was  united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Anna  C.  Loog, 
a  native  of  Pennsylvania.  Unto  them  have  been 
bom  two  children.  Thomas  and  Kathryn.  The 
parents  are  both  memljers  of  the  Episcopal  Church, 
with  which  Mr.  Maddock  has  been  coiniected  since 
the  age  of  sixteen. 

In  June,  1892.  our  subject  took  charge  of  the 
office  of  Commi.ssioner  of  Public  Works,  and  has 
since  filled  that  position  with  credit  to  himself  and 
the  satisfaction  of  the  entire  community.  He  has 
become  establi.shed  as  one  of  the  solid  and  leading 


men  of  Evan.ston.  and  is  recognized  as  a  valued 
citizen.  He  was  made  a  Mason  at  the  age  of 
twenty-one  years  in  Stevens  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.M. , 
of  Harford  County,  Md.,  and  has  now  taken  the 
Knight  Templar  degree. 


c=ri 


^-f^l 


I  J.  QUANTRELL,  who  is  one  of  the  lead- 
I  C  ing  educators  in  this  part  of  the  State,  has 
l~)  for  five  years  lieen  Principal  of  the  schools 
in  Des  Plaines.  The  record  of  his  life  is  as  fol- 
lows: He  was  boni  in  Eaton  County,  Slich.,  on 
the  6th  of  May,  1849.  and  is  a  son  of  Charles  and 
Lorena  iMarstoni  yuantrell.  His  father  was  a 
native  of  England,  but  in  his  youth  cros.sed  the 
Atlantic  to  America  and  became  a  resident  of 
New  York.  On  the  14th  of  June.  1831.  he  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Marston,  who  was 
torn  in  Chautauqua  Count>-,  N.  V.  The  father 
was  a  fmit-grower  and  farmer.  He  had  virtually 
no  school  pri\ileges,  but  he  made  the  best  of  his 
opportunities  and  met  with  fair  success  in  his 
business  career.  In  the  family  were  but  two  chil- 
dren: L.  J.,  of  this  sketch,  and  Ernest  Eugene, 
now  deceased. 

Mr.  Quantrell  of  this  sketch  removed  with  his 
parents  to  La  Porte  County.  Ind.,  where  he  be- 
gan his  education  in  the  district  schools.  He  af- 
terward attended  the  private  .school  conducted  by 
Timothy  H.  Ball  in  Crown  Point.  Ind.,  and  later 
was  a  student  in  the  La  Porte  High  School.  He 
has  been  liberally  educated,  and  for  three  years 
was  a  student  in  the  La  Porte  Technique  and 
Training  School,  from  which  he  was  graduated 
in  the  Class  of '72.  In  1879  he  attended  the 
.State  University  of  Kansas,  located  in  Lawrence, 
that  State.  Since  1872  he  has  been  engaged  in 
teaching  school:  in  fact,  his  entire  business  career 
has  been  devoted  to  that  work,  in  which  he  has 
met  with  signal  success.  He  was  Principal  of 
the  schools  at  Union  Mills,  La  Porte  County, 
Ind.,  and  afterward  held  a  similar  position  in 
Edwardsburg,  Cass  County,  Mich.  He  then  ac- 
cepted an  offiir  to  become  Principal  of  the  schools 
in  Solomon  City,  and  later  was  employed  in  Wa- 


486 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL   RECORD. 


thena.  Kan.,  and  Earh-ille.  111.  In  i88S  he  \va.s 
offered  the  principalship  of  the  schools  of  Des 
Plaines.  and  has  since  filled  that  position. 

During  the  late  war  Mr.  Quantrell  tried  to  en- 
ter the  ser\ice  of  his  country.  Col.  Packard  wish- 
ing him  to  act  as  a  fifer,  but  his  aunt  wrote  to 
Gov.  Morton  saying  that  he  was  too  young  to 
become  a  soldier,  and  his  plans  were  thus  frus- 
trated. In  1873  Mr.  Quantrell  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Miss  Harriet  A.  Manchester,  a  na- 
tive of  La  Porte  Count}-,  Ind.  They  have  one 
child,  a  son,  Enie.st,  who  is  still  at  home. 

In  his  social  relations,  Mr.  Quantrell  is  con- 
nected with  the  Ma.sonic  fraternity,  the  Odd  Fel- 
lows' lodge  and  encampment,  and  also  holds 
membership  with  the  Modem  Woodmen  pf"  Am- 
erica, and  the  National  I'nion.  In  politics,  he 
has  been  a  stalwart  adherent  of  the  Republican 
partv,  having  supported  it  since  casting  his  first 
vote  for  Gen.  Grant.  Both  he  and  his  wife  are 
faithful  and  consistent  members  of  the  Baptist 
Church,  and  while  in  Earlville  Mr.  Quantrell 
served  as  Chorister  and  Superintendent  of  the 
Sunday-school.  He  takes  an  active  intere.st  in 
church  work.  His  abilitv  as  an  instructor  is 
well  known,  and  he  readily  imparts  to  others  the 
knowledge  that  he  possesses.  His  long  con- 
tinued senice  in  Des  Plaines  shows  that  he  has 
given  the  best  satisfaction  and  is  esteemed  b>- 
those  with  whom  he  has  been  lirought  in  contact. 


EHARLES  O.  WINTER,  who  is  living  a  re- 
tired life  in  Barrington,  is  one  of  the  highly- 
respected  citizens  of  the  community,  and 
with  pleasure  we  present  to  our  readers  his  life 
record,  which  is  as  follows:  Bom  in  Grafton 
County,  N.  H.,  on  the  30th  of  November,  1835, 
he  is  the  son  of  J.  W.  and  Elmira  ( Goodhewi 
Winter,  both  of  whom  were  natives  of  the  Granite 
State.  His  father  was  bom  in  Grafton  County, 
June  30,  1813,  and  for  a  number  of  years  en- 
gaged in  merchandising  in  Campton.  At  length 
he  decided  to  tn,-  his  fortune  in  the  West,  and  in 
1855,  accompanied  by  his  family,  he  left  his  old 


liome  and  made  his  way  to  Lake  County.  111. 
There  he  secured  a  farm  and  carried  on  agricul- 
tural pursuits,  but  was  not  long  permitted  to  eu- 
joy  his  new  home,  for  his  death  occurred  Decem- 
ber 22,  1858.  His  wife  survives  him.  and  is  now 
living  with  her  son  in  Barrington. 

Our  subject  is  the  elde.st  in  a  family  of  two.sor. 
and  two  daughters.  Nellie  is  now  the  wife  '■: 
Aaron  Bedder,  of  Whitehall,  111.;  Phimelia  is  the 
wife  of  P.  W.  Gates,  of  Chicago:  and  E.  W.  i- 
general  manager  of  the  Chicago,  St.  Paul  i;v: 
Minneapolis  Railroad,  and  resides  at  St.  Paul. 

Charles  A.  Winter  spent  the  days  of  his  boy- 
hood and  youth  in  his  parents'  home,  and  after 
acquiritig  a  grx)d  education  in  the  common  schools, 
embarked  in  teaching,  which  profession  he  suc- 
ces.sfully  followed  for  three  terms,  in  Lake  County. 
In  the  summer  he  aided  in  the  lalx>rs  of  the  farm,  ■ 
and  upon  his  father's  death  he  as.sumed  its  man- 
agement, and  carried  on  the  place  and  bu.siness 
for  several  years.  In  1865  he  removed  to  Chi- 
cago, where  he  engaged  in  the  hotel  busine.ss  for 
about  ten  years.  In  187 1  he  left  the  city  and 
came  with  his  family  to  Barrington,  but  contin- 
ued to  carry  on  his  hotel  in  Chicago  until  1892, 
when  he  laid  aside  all  business  cares,  and  has 
since  lived  retired. 

On  the  2d  of  October,  1861,  was  celebrated  the 
marriage  of  Mr.  Winter  and  Miss  Adelia.  daugh- 
ter of  Horace  Cadwell,  who  was  one  of  the  earli- 
est settlers  of  Lake  Count>-.  The  lad\  was  born 
in  New  York,  but  was  reared  in  Lake  County. 
They  have  one  daughter.  Alma,  who  is  now  at- 
tending the  High  School  of  Chicago.  The  home 
of  the  family  is  a  comfortable  and  commodious 
residence,  and  the  household  is  the  abode  of  hos- 
pitality. 

Mr.  Winter  exercises  his  right  of  franchise  in 
.support  of  the  Republican  party,  with  which  he 
has  afiBliated  since  attaining  his  majority.  He 
has  never  been  an  office-seeker,  preferring  to  de- 
vote his  entire  attention  to  his  business  interests, 
in  which  he  has  met  with  excellent  success. 
Honorable  and  upright  in  all  dealings,  he  has  by 
well-directed  efforts  achieved  prosperity-,  and  is 
now  ranked  among  the  substantial  citizens  of  the 
communitv. 


Chari.ks  a.   Prout. 


PORTRAIT  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  RECORD. 


487 


EHARLES  A.  PROUT,  one  of  the  progressive 
young  biisine>is  men  of  Wlieaton.  is  a  native  of 
the  State,  boni  at  Princeton.  Bureau  County, 
on  the  last  day  of  January,  1S59.  He  is  a  de- 
.scendant  of  Welsh  ancestors,  who  came  to  Mas.sa- 
chusetts  early  in  the  seventeenth  centur>-.  His 
father,  Augustus  C.  Prout,  was  reared  at  Middle- 
town,  Conn.,  and  became  a  carpenter  and  builder. 
In  1S51  he  migrated  to  Princeton,  111.,  where  he 
engaged  in  building  houses  for  sale,  meeting  with 
gratifying  success,  the  number  of  buildings  thus 
erected  and  disposed  of  reaching  fort>-four.  Re- 
moving to  Chicago  in  1867,  he  continued  the.se 
operations  on  a  large  scale.  He  established  a 
planing-mill.  in  which  he  fitted  up  material  for 
houses,  and  continued  building  and  selling  until 
his  death,  which  occurred  at  the  early  age  of 
fifty-two  years,  in  1875.  His  wife,  Sarah  C.  Aus- 
tin, who  .sur\-ives  him,  is  a  native  of  Suffield, 
Conn.,  and  now  makes  her  home  with  her  son, 
whose  name  heads  this  article,  in  Wheaton. 

C.  A.  Prout  was  but  eight  years  old  when  his 
parents  .settled  in  the  Town  of  Lake,  in  Chicago. 
His  prinian.-  education  was  furnished  by  the  pub- 
lic schools  of  that  localit\-,  and  he  subsequently 
attended  the  Cook  County  High  School  and  the 
old  University  of  Chicago.  Ill  health  t\vice  com- 
pelled him  to  leave  school,  and  he  decided  to 
adopt  some  outdoor  occupation,  in  the  hope  of 
recovering  his  .strength.  In  1884  he  came  to 
Wheaton.  and  began  the  study  of  surveying  under 
the  tutelage  of  J.  G.  Vallette,  then  County  Sur- 


veyor, and  was  soon  appointed  Deput>-  Surveyor, 
ultimately  finishing  the  term  of  Mr.  \'allette,  as 
he  also  did  that  of  his  successor.  Since  then, 
and  up  to  the  present  time,  he  has  carried  on  a 
successful  business  in  general  sur\-eying,  real  es- 
tate and  insurance.  He  is  the  present  City  Kr.- 
gineer  of  Wheaton. 

Mr.  Prout  has  been  active  in  jiromoting  the 
growth  of  the  town  and  its  busiriess,  and  has 
earned  the  success  which  he  desenes.  He  has 
published  a  ver>-  handsome  little  pamphlet,  illus- 
trating the  homes  and  principal  buildings  of 
Wheaton,  of  which  the  town  and  its  people  as 
well  as  Mr.  Prout.  have  a  right  to  be  proud. 
He  is  an  active  member  of  the  Baptist  diurch, 
and  gives  his  moral  and  political  .support  to  the 
cause  of  Prohibition. 

An  interesting  and  important  event  in  the  life 
of  Mr.  Prout  occurred  September  7,  1S87.  when 
he  married  a  native  of  Wheaton — Miss  Alice  E. 
Rudd,  daughter  of  William  C.  and  Eliza  (Orcutt) 
Rudd,  natives  of  the  State  of  New  York,  and  of 
Scotch  descent.  Mrs.  Prout' s  grandfather,  Dan- 
iel Rudd,  was  an  early  resident  of  Wheaton.  He 
was  boni  near  Boston,  Mass.,  and  came  to  Illinois 
in  1852,  setthug  for  a  short  time  on  a  farm  near 
Highland  Park,  Lake  County.  He  remained 
there  but  a  few  years,  removing  to  Wheaton  long 
before  the  Civil  War,  and  dying  there  in  1868. 
Mr.  and  Mrs  Prout  are  the  parents  of  a  fine  boy, 
five  and  one-half  years  old,  named  Harold  Ber- 
tram. 


INDKX. 


BIOGRAPHICAL. 


Ackerniau,  J.  D 312 

Adams,  Jolin 23 

Adams,  J.  Q 3q 

Adams.  J.  Q 444 

Ahrbecker,  Frederick  201  j 

Albro,  Ira 125  1 

Ariidt,  John 117 

Arthur.  C.  A 99 

Ashley.  Dr.  J.  H...  341  j 

Anstiu,  Dauiel 381  , 


B 


Baldwin.  A.  R 4.(S 

"airy,  J.  C 397 

liartelLs,  H.  W.  R,  M.  D 286 

Banith.  William 188 

Hassett,  O.  r 290 

Hates,  William 235 

Battiii.  C.  G 157 

Belirens.  J.  C 483 

Beuder,  J.  E 191 

Beiuiett.  Miss  Annette,  M.  D 442 

Heuuett,  C.  E 387 

Betts.  Thomas 331 

Bi.xby,  I-:.  W 257 

Blakely.  John 159 

Blaucliard.  Capt.  W*alter 352 

Blieveniichl.  Christian 378 

Blodgett,  C.  B 459 

Boeckcr,  B  B 469 

IJotjart.  George...-. 424 

Bogue,  G.  M 465 

Bohlauder.  John 290 

Boyulou,  Edgar iSo 

Brown.  Ira 361 

Brown.  Judge  G.  W 149 

Brown.  Martin 205 

Brown,  M.  D 481 

Brown,  M.  H 428 

Brown.  Thomas  207 

Br\an,  C.  P 


443 

Bnchauau,  James 75 

Buchholz,  H.  F 200 

Buettuer.  Eniil 432 

Burlingarae,  J.  A 431 

Bush.  H.  L 314  1 


Carpenter,  Charles 435 

Carpenter,  Heur>' 367 

Carpenter,  W.  S 284 

Carter,  William 258 

Cary.  Hon.  J.  W 376 

Cary.  1'.  V 386 

Chadwick,  Wesley 161 

Chessman.  A.  G 200 

Childs.  A.  T 303 

Childs.  Hon.  R.  A 277 

Church,  Capt.  L.  H 164 

Chnrchilt,  I.  li 333 

Churchill.  Win.slow 287 

Clark.  CD 171 

Clark,  I..  C 463 

Cleveland,  S.  G 103 

Clifford,  J.  O 447 

Cochran,  J.  1 457 

Cole.  Capt.  J.  J 248 

Compton.  H.  D 212 

Cougleton.  Itenjamiu 236 

Congleton,  F.  J 456 

Congleton,  J.  A  238 

Cougleton,  Mark 246 

Conley,  James 122 

Converse,  E.  R 441 

Crabtrec,  H.  N 450 

Cram])ton,  Nathaniel 22,s 

Crescy ,  D.  W 258 

Cromer,  G.  W 152 

Curtiss,  Hon.  Charles 243 

Cutting,  C.  S 405 


D 


Deibert,  G.  F 118 

Dempsey,  Andrew 126 

DeWolf'l..  E 142 

Diugee,  Squire 429 

DoUiuger,  J.  A 384 

Dorathy,  .\zel 216 

Downer,  Pierce 454 

Dunham,  Dauiel 133 

E 

Edwards,  Prof.  H.  S 306 


Eggers,  Heur\  195 

Ehlers,  W.  H 169 

Ellsworth.  M.  S 190 

Emer>-,  W.  H 293 

E-scher.  Fit 483 


Farrar,  E.  W 27.S 

Faul,  Heur>' 239 

Ferrj-,  J.  1 210 

Fillmore,  Millard 67 

Fischer,  August 210 

Fischer,  C.  A 183 

Fischer,  H.  D 255 

Fischer,  John 342 

Fischer,  J.  F 206 

Fisher,  F.  J.  T.,  M.  D 174 

Fox.  Charles *  ...281 

Fox,  H.  M 226 

Frauzeu,  B.  I„ 245 

Franzen,  H.  H 218 

Frauzeu.  W.  F 266 

Fritz,  Heun.-. , ,  172 


Garfield,  J.  A 95 

Gary,  Charles 363 

Gary,  C.  N 332 

Gary,  C.  W 208 

Gary.  Erastus 288 

Gar>*,  Hon.  E.  H 345 

Gary,  G.  I> 314 

Gary ,  J.  P 294 

Gary,  N.  E .' 282 

Gary,  P.  V 386 

Gary.  W.  L 309 

Gary.  W.  S. 304 

Gates,  R.  W 237 

Glos,  A.  S ■ 170 

Glos,  H.  I 187 

Goin.  F.  H 430 

Goodrich,  C.  H 167 

Gough.  R.  S 133 

Gonrley,  W.  W.  M.  D 291 

Grant.  D.  J 374 

Grant,  U .  S 87 

Guild.  Dr.  E-  C 254 


INDEX. 


Guild,  G.  W 32^ 

Guild,  Israel 265 

Guild,  R.  C 268 

Guild,  W.  B 244 

Guild.  \V.  K 247 

Guild.  \V.  1...  M.  D 211 


H 


IMgan«.  W.  B  . 


•  36s 

•357 


H,Tunnci>^. 


■37S 

•430 

JUrad 376 

■479 


Hammirschinicil.  !•.  W.  M. 
Hammerschmidt.  William 404 


Haniinett.  Kdward. 


322 

liarrison,  Benjamin loy 

Harrison.  Mrs.  Man- 
Harrison 


W. 


424 

» 5. 

Ilartung,  C.  I, jg, 

Hatch,  A.  F 3,S,s 

Hatch.  Frederick .^06 

Hatch.  J.  C '..'.'..401 

Havens,  D.N ,,26 

Hayes,  R.  B gi 

Heidoru.  Heury log 

Hcmenway,  Charles i^, 

Henienway,  L-  G.,  M.  U iq- 

Herrick.  Ira 3,., 

Herring.  W.J.. 2-^ 

Heuer,  H.  .\ ,,6 

Hiatt.  Hon.  L.  I ,.= 

408 
383 
468 
386 
373 


Hibbard.  S.  R 

Hill.  Stillman 

Hill;  T.  F. 

Hinckley,  W.  B 

Hinds,  E.  P 

Hoffman.  Joseph ^oi 

Howarth,  Benjamin 15 

Howe,  E.  B 

Hubbaid,  H.  W 

Hubbard.  Dr.  Theodore 

Hull.  Frank '. 

Hull.  T.  M 

Hunt,  J.  J .' 

Hnrd,  H.  B 


Jones,  Capt,  M.  E 178 

Jones,  Truniau 208 

Jordan.  W.  R ,j^ 


K 


Kampp.  J.  H ,50 

Keller,  Adam jgi 

Ketchum.  G.  E 365 

Kingsley.  S.  W 3^., 

Kobusch.  J.  H 121 

Korlhaner.  H.  II ,gj 

Kostrzeski.  John 240 

Kreft.J.H 475 


Laird.  W.J 3^5 

Laudwer.  B.  H ^ ^26 

Leahe,  T.  W ^^o 

Leeseberg.  E.  H.  W ,82 

Lester,  M.  B 216 

Lewis,  E.  J 205 

Lewis,  T.  E 263 

Lincoln.  Abraham yg 

Long,  Frederick ' ,58 

Loveless,  A.  C 235 

Loveless,  Braman 2S3 

Lunt,  Orringtou ^09 

Lyman,  H.  M 3JJ 

Lyman.  Thomas 301 


+89 

Nind,J.N 355 

Norris,  C.  E ,24 

Norris,J.  A ,6,, 


o 


O'Conucll.  Tiniiitliv .20 

0'-r,A.C .....442 

Osboru,  J.  W 4j8 

Owen,  Dr.  C.  S 212 

Oweu,  R.  W '."'.'!48o 

Oyer,  A.  D 3^8 


Papenhauseu.  J.  II „. . 

Parsons,  P.  A 

Paxton,  J.  P 

Pfeifcr,  Charles 

Phillips,  H.  W 

Pierce.  Franklin 

Pinuey.  M.  I 

Plnmmer,  C.  W 

Polk.J-  K .'.'.'.'.'.'.".'.' 59 

Poll  worth,  Frederick ,  j, 

Pratt,  Dr.  Leonard -53 

Pratt,  E.  H..  M.  D.,  LL.  D 458 

Prout,  C  A '.'.".'.'.'487 

Prouty.  Kneeland 

Purnell.  George 


M 


•I.S5 


.484 


Isherwood,  I.>r.  T.  G. 
Irwig,  A.  H 


■123 
■387 


Maddock.  H.  S 

Madison,  James 31 

Manning,  T.  M jj8 

Marquardt,  Frederick ,40 

Martin,  H.  H ^g, 

Mather,  F.  E j^g 

Mather.  Hon.  F.  H ,,3 

Matter,  N.  E 132 

Matthews.  P.  P 232 

Maxson,  Dr.  O.  T .jg 

McCabe,  Francis „§ 

McGarry,  P.  J ^^y 

McKee,  J.  W ,56 

Meyer,  F.  W 202 

Moffatt.  S.  W 

Monroe.  James 

Morgan,  Prof.  R.  T 

Murray,  Hon.  R.  N 


y 


Mj'ers.  J.J. 


•347 
•  35 
.217 
.250 


364 


228 
398 
307 
230 
366 
71 
421 
232 


.296 
■219 


Quantrell.  I,.  J ^j,. 


R 


4tw 
134 
68 


473 
425 
192 

233 


Jack-son,  Andrew .3 

Jefferson.  Thomas 2- 

Jenkins,  Charles jg- 

Johnson,  Andrew 83 

Johnson,  W.  H ■•'.337 

Jones,  Mrs.  A.  V '418 


X 


Naramore.  L.  P 3^, 

Neltnor.  J.  C igg 

Nightingale,  Robert 407 


Reade,  J.  T 

Reed,  C.  F 

Reed,  W.  T 

Reuss,  George ,-., 

Reynolds,  Dr.  B.  P 

Reynolds,  Milan 

Richards.  J.  A 

Richardson.  S.  H ■. 

Robertson .  J ohn 3I5 

Roehler.  J.  H • .  i  ^  177 

Rogers,  Capt.  T.  S 284 

RoOr-J-M ......Ui 

Ros--^.J-H ,34 

Roternuind.  Edward ,62 

Rudorf.  Paul,  M.  D 3,0 

Rumble,  John , 3,, 

Russell,  A.  T ,,3 

R»">-I-'; .'383 


Sanford.  Col.  J.  p ,„ 


490 


INDEX. 


Sa»-\-er,  D.  J 305 

Scharlan,  John 466 

Schatz,  William 439 

Schierdiiig.  Heur>- 403 

Schranier,  Theodore I73 

Scott,  Willard,  Sr 35" 

Sheahan.  Dauiel 256 

Simonsou,  Vigho 310 

Simpson,  E.  G.,  M,  D 344 

Simpson,  George 427 

Smith,  C.  B 382 

.Smith,  Hiram 234 

Smith,  J.  P 268 

Smith,  J,  \V 136 

Smith,  W.  G : .273 

Snyder,  J.  K 227 

Stacy,  Moses 336 

Stacy,  P,  W 332 

Standidge,  J.  E 123 

Stauge,  Albert 183 

Staple-s,  M.  I, 412 

Stark,  L,  L 150 

Stiles.  C,  H 325 

Stover,  L.  C 213 

Stover,  Rev.  Seymour 292 

Stuenkel.  Fred 184 

Stuenkel,  Louis 163 

Sweet,  Geu.B,  J 445 

T 

Taylor.  George 40,s 


Taylor,  Zacharj- 63    Waterman,  W   G 411 


Tedrahn,  C.  .4 120 

Thatcher,  F.ldred 283 

Thoma,  Frank 449 

Tope,  W.  A.,  M.  D .308 

Trull,  A.  D .    Ifi9 

Tyler,  John •  .xS 


V 


Vallctte,  Capt.  J.  G 266 

Van  Buren,  CM 316 

Van  Buren,  Martin 47 

Vandcrhoof,  H.  W.,  M.  D 231 

Vaughan,  H.  Y 338 

Voll,  Caspar i.S2 


Watson,  T.  W 131 

Weldon,  S.  n 286 

Wells,  J.  M 276 

West.  John .  .513 

Wheatou,  J.  C  ..  .-lis 

Wheatoil,  J.  C,  Jr 294 

Wheatou,  Hon.  W,  1 119 

Whipple,  Prof.  Elliot 315 

W'hitcomh,  Frank 402 

Whiltou,  1-rauk 144 

Wianl,  AH 137 

Willianis,  H.  S 161 

Wilson,  11,  T 335 

Wilson,  James 422 

Wilson,  W.  J.,  M,  U 194 

Wiuchell,  E.  H 397 

Winter,  CO 4S6 

Woottou,  Edward 2S.S 


Yacklcy,  Joe, 


w 


Wagner,  W,  H 316 

Wakelec,  Dr.  Orlaudo 229 

Walker.  Alfred 219 

Wallace,  J,  P 308  | 

Ward,  David •. 199 

Wanic,  I).  S 139 

Wanie,  T.  S 371  :  ZuclcU,  William 

Washington,  (jeorge 19 

Waterniau.  Dr.  ,\lfrcd 391 


Portraits. 


.\dams.  Johu 22 

Adams,  J,  Q 38 

Arthur,  CA 98 

Ashley,  Dr.  J.  H 340 

.Austin,  Dauiel 380 

Bates.  William 234 

Bates,  Mrs.  William 234 

Belts,  Thomas 330 

Brown,  Ira 360 

Brown,  Judge  G,  W 148 

Bryan,  C  P 443 

Buchanan,  James 74 

Carpenter,  Charles 434 

Clark,  L.C 462 

Cleveland,  S.  G 102 

Cramptou,  Nathauiel 222 

Cramptou,  Mrs.  Xalhauiel 223 

Curtiss,  Hon.  Charles 242 

Fillmore,  Millard 66 

Fox,  Charles 280 

Garfield,  J.  A ■  ■  ■  94 

Gary,  Hon.  E.  H 344 


Garj-,  J.  P 294 

Glos,  HeuryL 186 

Goodrich,  CM 166 

Grant,  U.  S ..!...  86 

Hanimerschmidt,  William 404 

Harrison,  Benjamin 106 

Harrison,  W.  H 50 

Hatch,  J.  C 400 

Hayes,  R.  B 90 

Hubbard,  Dr.  Theodore 416 

Jackson,  .Andrew 42 

Jefferson,  Thomas 26 

Johusou,  Audrew ". 82 

Jones,  M.  E 178 

Lewis,  E.  J ,. 204 

Lewis,  T.  E 260 

Lewis,  Mrs.  T.  E 261 

Liucolu,  Abraham 78 

Lj'Uian,  Thomas 298 

Lyman.  Mrs.  Thomas 299 

Madison,  James 30 

Monroe,  James 34 


Murray,  Hou.  K.  N 250 

Norris.  C  E 123 

Pierce,  Frauklic 70 

Polk,  J.  K , .ss 

Pratt,  Dr,  Leonard 452 

Reynolds,  Dr.  B.  P 472 

Reynolds.  Mrs.  B.  E.  E ,476 

Roehkr.  J.  H .176 

Rogers,  Capt.  T.  S 284 

Rumble,  John 318 

Rumble,  Mrs.  Johu 319 

Ruth,  L,  C 382 

Scott,  Willard,  Sr 350 

Stover,  Rev.  Seymour 291 

Taylor,  Zachary 62 

Tyler,  Johu 54 

V'auBurcu,  Martin 46 

Warue,  T.  S 370 

Washington,  George 18 

Waterman,  Dr.  Alfred 390 

Watson,  T.  W  128 

Watson,  Mrs.  T.  W 129 

Wheatou,  J.  C "4 


